The labour movement is the best unifying factor that binds every Malaysian regardless of race, class, gender, religious or political beliefs, said a veteran trade unionist.

"Why then is the government not using the labour movement and related issues as a platform in its national unity and racial integration agenda?" asked A H Ponniah, who has over 30 years experience in the public sector union.

"Trade unions are essentially struggle organisations with clear goals. It is based on the principles of fairness to all and care for all.

"So why are we not looking at trade unions as the sole unifying force in Malaysia? This would be impossible to achieve in the other sectors such as economy and trade," he added.

He said this could be achieved by "simply letting them play their respective roles in public life and whatever that is acceptable to the public".

A thorough reform of the trade union movement, particularly the formation or registration of trade unions and the professionalism of the movement, he said, is the only way forward.

"While (the formation of) in-house unions should not be officially sanctioned (by the government), there should be no restrictions either," he told malaysiakini in Kuala Lumpur recently.

Multiracial participation

Another veteran, A Ragunathan, 70, in supporting overall reform, wanted to see "full participation of all races in both the public and private sectors without practicing parochialism".

For starters, he said, the private sector should hire more non-Chinese Malaysians to reflect the country's racial composition.

"There is also a severe labour shortage at all levels now, particularly in the government sector, and this is impeding law enforcement and policy implementation," he said when met in Kuala Lumpur recently.

The former Cuepacs president who retired in 1989 felt that potential non-Bumi applicants were largely put-off from the public sector by the lack of job satisfaction, absence of promotional prospects and unequal opportunities.

"Frustrations abound because there is no merit-based recognition of work done by non-Bumis. If this is not addressed soon, it would be a case of trying to fit square pegs into round holes," he warned.

"Until and unless the workforce is educated, an undoubtedly Herculean task, nothing will ever change."

Given a powerful government, he said, the MTUC must actively lobby to educate members of Parliament on some of the labour laws that hinder workers' growth and movement.

K Duraiappah, 80, another trade union veteran who had served with the International Labour Organisation (ILO) for almost 13 years before retiring in the mid-80s, said the MTUC held a more educational role in organising workers.

"Its task is to project to the government that the labour movement is a well-oiled unit, united and independent," he said in Kuala Lumpur.

Both he and Ragunathan agreed that a strong labour movement would be able to command the overall respect where political parties will come running to them.

The government has proposed extensive amendments to the Trade Unions Act 1959, which the MTUC is generally opposed to on grounds that it will kill-off what's left of the labour movement.

DGTU has enough powers

Ragunathan felt it was unnecessary to give the DGTU more powers, a drastic measure prompted by the protracted crisis within the National Union of Bank Employees leadership.

"He already has wide powers that is more than sufficient to address any labour situation. Why give him more? This is courting danger as there may be an abuse of power," he said, admitting that he was unaware of the issue.

Duraiappah, who pioneered the country's labour movement in the 1940s and a founding member of Cuepacs, also claimed not to know about the proposed amendments.

But both agreed that any changes to the labour laws must be progressive.

The ILO has also criticised the government for its iron-grip on the labour movement by not ratifying the convention of freedom of association.

Advocating for a more up-to-date movement, Ponniah said trade unions must be willing to allow professional officials, such as in Singapore, India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Pakistan in order to keep up with rapid changes.

"In Singapore, for example, the secretaries-general are allowed to be full-time officials paid by the respective trade unions. This may not be the best but it is more democratic."

In Malaysia, he said, smaller unions can only get bigger if professionals are hired to key positions and should consolidate like the merger of banks to face global challenges as large entities.

Prior to 1970, Ponniah said there were full-time trade union leaders but the government amended the laws and clamped down on trade unions. "Then everything changed."

Recognising the workload borne by today's trade union leaders, he said they were unfortunately too focused on "housekeeping or internal issues".

The labour movement, he said, was responsible for bringing upon itself extensive executive control and exploitation by creating an ideal environment.

Individual affiliation

Refuting Ponniah's assertion, Ragunathan said trade unions were never controlled by the government.

"While I don't think the MTUC has allowed itself to be controlled, I'm not disputing that some individual leaders may have displayed an affiliation to certain parties.

"I would agree, though, if you say that the workers' movement is ineffective. This is because there is a lack of knowledge of pertinent issues."

Besides being educated and partisan, he said every trade union leader should take the MTUC's policies back to their respective constituents for grassroots involvement and implementation.