00:00Malaysia's social security system provides strong coverage for formal workers during official hours.
00:07But for accidents involving those in flexible roles or occurring outside official working hours, the safety net often disappears.
00:16In 2023, out of 82,876 accidents reported to the social security organization, over 14,000 were not covered under the Employment Injury Scheme.
00:27And as work patterns evolve and more Malaysians take on flexible jobs, these gaps have become more apparent.
00:34Norma Mansour, Director of University of Malaya's Social Wellbeing Research Centre, said while the current system is relatively robust, it doesn't fully reflect modern employment realities.
00:45The gaps are those who are in the informal sector in terms of work injury coverage,
00:52and also people who are in the formal sector and who are not having the formal agreement.
01:01So you have temporary workers or contract for service employees within the formal sector.
01:10Gabungan e-hailing Malaysia Chief Activist Jose Rizal said improvements needed to be made to Perkesu's claim system to make the process easier, especially for those recovering from trauma.
01:21Gabungan e-hailing Malaysia Chief Activist Jose Rizal said improvements needed to be made to the public health care system.
01:31To address these issues, the government has proposed the Scheme Kemalangan Bukan Bencana Kerja or the No Fault Accident Scheme.
01:40This scheme intends to provide coverage for injuries regardless of when or where they happen.
01:46In the past, if an individual meet up with an accident and you want to claim, it's more about finding out whose fault is it.
01:55With a No Fault Accident Scheme, what it would mean is that we are focusing on the benefit.
02:02That what kind of benefits this person would require, what kind of benefits is he entitled to,
02:09and it makes claims even easier and simpler and faster, of course.
02:18Jose emphasized the need to expand the Scheme to include the self-employed who are often left out of existing coverage
02:24and called for clear timelines and frameworks to guide that inclusion.
02:28Although the Scheme received approval in principle in 2024, it still awaits parliamentary approval,
02:34a delay that leaves many vulnerable workers in limbo.
02:37The Scheme's introduction could also have ripple effects on how personal injury cases are handled,
02:43potentially reshaping the role of legal representation in accident claims.
02:47However, lawyer Tunku Farik Ismail argued that while SKBBK may reduce reliance on legal action,
02:55a dual system will likely persist as some individuals may still opt for private insurance alongside per-casual coverage.
03:03In respect of how they pay out compensation is fixed by statute under the SOXO Act.
03:09Whereas private insurance for personal accident is how deep your pocket is, you can buy more coverage if you pay more.
03:19Meanwhile, Norma said per-casual expansion could be an opportunity for collaboration between the private sector and government.
03:26We should work together rather than one try to kill the other and we compete, we become better or we work together.
03:33We hope that this scheme, the proposed scheme, is going to also look into how it can be inclusive
03:41and it can include the lowest category of people or the lowest income category of adults in Malaysia.
03:52So the faster we do this, the faster it is for us to be able to build that fund or the reserves that we need
04:01in order for us to cover any risks that come forward.
