Dismissed in Sarawak? Start at JPPM
Whether you worked in oil and gas or for a timber firm, your claim starts here.
Workers in Sibu and Miri work in different industries, yet both file through the same office and the same conciliation process.
Who files a case with this office?
Kuching handles written representations from anyone employed within Sarawak, whether the job was in a government department, an oil and gas support company or a river port.
Miri’s energy sector, Sibu’s timber and shipping trade along the Rajang, and Kuching’s services and administration base all go through the same filing.
How does the Sarawak Labour Ordinance fit in?
Leave, notice and other day to day entitlements in Sarawak come from the state’s own Labour Ordinance, not the Employment Act used in the Peninsula.
Unfair dismissal sits outside that Ordinance. It is decided under the federal Industrial Relations Act, so a Sarawak filing follows the same rules as a filing anywhere else in the country.
What happens at conciliation?
An officer sits down with you and your employer and works toward a settlement. Neither side brings a solicitor into that meeting.1
Many workers prepare by speaking to a lawyer before the date, not during the meeting itself.
How does your case reach this stage?
Everything starts with a written representation to the Director General, and the 60-day clock runs from your dismissal date. Check the date if you have not already.
If conciliation does not settle the dispute, it is referred to the Industrial Court, and JPPM confirms the branch (Kuching has a branch). Since 2020, the ministerial approval step that used to slow things down is gone.2
What should you prepare?
Bring a folder with your contract, your dismissal letter and a plain list of dates. That does more for you than a long verbal account on the day.
If you want a lawyer’s help before conciliation, send your industry and dismissal date. An independent employment lawyer can review the facts and reply about whether and how they can act.
If your work was based anywhere in Sarawak and you want a lawyer's help with your claim, send your industry and dismissal date. An independent employment lawyer can take it forward if you have grounds.
For people seeking legal representation. For general information, please use our guides and tools.
First contact: general facts only, such as date, location, employment status and a short summary. Keep documents private until an identified independent lawyer contacts you and specifically requests them.
Common questions
Does the Sarawak Labour Ordinance change how conciliation works here?
No. The Ordinance sets Sarawak's own statutory entitlements, separate from Peninsular Malaysia's Employment Act. Unfair dismissal claims still run through JPPM and the federal Industrial Relations Act.
I worked in the oil and gas sector in Miri. Is my case handled differently from a Kuching office job?
No. Conciliation follows the same process regardless of industry. What matters is that your employment was based in Sarawak, not which sector you worked in.
Do timber and river trade workers in Sibu use the same office?
Yes. Workers in Sibu, including those in commerce and shipping on the Rajang River, file through the same Sarawak office and follow the same process.
What happens if conciliation does not resolve my Sarawak case?
It is referred directly to the Industrial Court for a hearing, and JPPM confirms which branch hears it. No ministerial screening step is left to wait for since a 2020 amendment.
Sources
- At conciliation before the Industrial Relations Department, solicitors are not permitted to represent either party inside the meeting itself. Mah Weng Kwai & Associates, Unfair Dismissal
- Since the Industrial Relations (Amendment) Act 2020 came into force on 1 January 2021, the Director General refers a case that does not settle at conciliation directly to the Industrial Court. MECA, Industrial Relations Act 1967 Guide
Keep reading
If your work was based anywhere in Sarawak and you want a lawyer's help with your claim, send your industry and dismissal date. An independent employment lawyer can take it forward if you have grounds.
For people seeking legal representation. For general information, please use our guides and tools.
First contact: general facts only, such as date, location, employment status and a short summary. Keep documents private until an identified independent lawyer contacts you and specifically requests them.