While Sarawak wants better protection and benefits for its workers as stipulated in the Employment Act, the state government is not prepared to open its doors to workers from the peninsula.

This is why Chief Minister Abdul Taib Mahmud is opposed to the extension of the Employment Act - a federal legislation - to include the East Malaysian state without certain modifications.

According to Sarawak Deputy Chief Minister and Minister of Finance Dr George Chan Hong Nam, if the Act was extended without any amendments, there would be serious implications on Sarawak's rights over immigration and labour matters.

Sarawak has extracted these state rights when it joined Sabah, Malaya and Singapore to form the Federation of Malaysia in 1963.

Speaking to reporters after the swearing-in of 62 newly-elected state assemblymen yesterday, Chan said Sarawak had demanded certain concessions to protect its rights over immigration and the flow of labour before any agreement to extend the Act to the state.

The federal government could extend the Act unilaterally if it choses to do so, as it did in the late 60s when it extended the Continental Shelf Act to cover Sarawak and Sabah prior to the establishment of Petronas, the national oil company.

Petronas was invested with the rights for the exploitation of offshore and oil and gas in the country despite official protest from the then Sarawak Alliance government.

But this is unlikely to happen now as the federal government and Sarawak state government - both being part of the Barisan Nasional coalition - 'enjoy close and cordial relationships'.

Ball in ministry's court

Last week, Taib Mahmud said the state government had forwarded its recommendations to the Human Resource Ministry and that the ball was now in their court on when to extend the Act to Sarawak.

Chan explained: "We want to give the same benefits to our workers as in the peninsula but in doing so we do not want to sacrifice our state's rights."

"As of today, Sarawak is not ready to have a free flow of labour between the state and peninsula as it would affect local workers."

He reiterated that the state had no problem with the extension of the Act to Sarawak, adding that "certain variations" needed to be made first.

"We have no objections (to the extension of the Act). We are all for it if our state's rights in matters like immigration and not having a free flow of labour are maintained."

The deputy chief minister said the state government had yet to hear any reply from the Human Resource Ministry to its letter of Oct 9 this year.