Union History
Timber Employees Union Peninsular Malaysia (TEUPM) was established in April 1968 at the Forest Research Institute of Malaysia (FRIM), Kepong, Kuala Lumpur.
At the beginning, TEUPM was focussing on organising workers in logging companies, sawmills and plywood factories in Selangor, Negeri Sembilan and Terengganu.
Now, TEUPM covers workers in the logging and timber processing industries, which produce rattan, bamboo, plywood or furniture. The union has 8,000 members in 48 factories in peninsular Malaysia.
Scope of representation
- Timber
i. Plywood & Veneer
ii. Moulding
iii. Door & Door Frame
iv. Furniture
v. Fibreboard
vi. Chipboard
vii. Cemboard
viii. Particleboard
ix. Pallet
x. Speaker Box
xi. Paqueit & Finger Joint
xii. Pencil
xiii. Saw Mill
- Rattan
- Bamboo
Struggles and Milestones
One of the most important struggles of TEUPM was a 45-day strike in 2006 in Terengganu, which protested against the managerial staff’s sexual harassment against union members at Metro Pacific Plywood Sdn. Bhd.
The strike was a big issue at the time, even the Chief Minister of Terengganu was also involved in negotiations with the company. TEUPM successfully defended the rights of women workers.
Current Challenges
In the 21st century, TEUPM is facing multiple challenges in organising workers in the timber industry.
Firstly, widespread use of contract workers in the industry has caused difficulty for timber workers to join TEUPM.
Many timber companies hire contract workers through agency companies with a contract period of 6 months or one year, some workers are paid on piece rate basis.
This means, the union cannot claim recognition from the principal companies, it has to send the letter of claiming recognition to the agency companies. All contract workers do not enjoy the benefits of regular workers such as EPF and SOCSO.
Secondly, the proportion of migrant workers in the industry is high, which is approximately 80 per cent of the workforce in the industry. Majority migrant workers are afraid to join the union because of threats from companies. Even if they joined the union, they would return to their country of origin after 2 or 3 years.
However, since 2018, TEUPM has actively organized migrant workers to increase the union membership. The union helped migrant workers to solve their problems at workplaces. Now about 1,000 TEUPM members are migrant workers.
Thirdly, employers often discriminate against the union, resorting to various tactics to defeat the union in the process of claiming recognition.
For instance, during the secret ballot exercise, employers will use tourist buses to fetch workers for “visiting” trips. When TEUPM lodged complaints with the Industrial Relations Department (JPP), no actions were taken against the companies.
Organisational Structure
Below is the list of the national council of TEUPM (Year 2020) :
President : Nahatiran a/l Perumal
Vice President : Grace a/p Bangariah
Vice President : Siti Salwa binti Ahmad
General Secretary : Nor Azlan bin Yaacob
Assistant G.S. : Rasdi bin Abu Hanipah
Assistant G.S. : Suria binti Khamis
Treasurer : Saharuddin bin Mohamad
Exco : Norma binti Yusof – Sg. Petani branch
: Hussein bin Abd Rahman – P.Pinang / Kulim branch
: Samsinisah binti Abd Hameed – Ipoh branch
: Baharuddin bin Ali – Klang branch
: Zaidi bin Tabri – N.Sembilan branch
: Fahemi bin Azaldin – Segamat branch
: Hafizal bin Hamid – Batu Pahat branch
: Mislina binti Sagi – Kluang branch
: Mohd Ainek bin Salem – Johor Bahru branch
: Rohani binti Sidek – Temerloh branch
: Nor Syuhada binti Khalid – Kuantan branch
Contact Us
If you are a worker currently working in the timber industry and interested in joining our union, please contact us immediately!
Address : No: 10A, Tingkat Satu, Jalan AU 5C/14, Lembah Keramat, 54200 Kuala Lumpur.
Tel : (+60)341073594
Mobile Tel : (+60)19-370 4886
Fax : (+60)341078180
Email : teupmgs@gmail.com
Website : http://teupm.blogspot.com
