Liability of principals, contractors and subcontractors for salary of workman
s 65
65.—(1) Where a principal, in the course of or for the purposes of or in pursuance of or in furtherance of the interests of the principal’s trade or business, contracts with a contractor for the supply of labour or for the execution by or under the contractor of the whole or any part of any work undertaken by the principal, and any salary is due to any workman by the contractor or any subcontractor under the contractor for labour supplied or for work done in the course of the execution of such work, the principal and the contractor and any such subcontractor (not being the employer) are jointly and severally liable with the employer to pay the workman as if the workman had been immediately employed by the principal, and where salary is claimed from the principal, this Act (with the exception of section 33 relating to priority of salary) applies as if reference to the principal were substituted for reference to the employer, except that salary claimed is to be calculated with reference to the salary of the workman under the employer by whom the workman is immediately employed.(1A) No principal, contractor or subcontractor, not being the employer, is jointly and severally liable to any workman under subsection (1) for more than the salary earned in one month for work done by the employer. (1B) In the case of a contract for constructional work, the principal is not liable for the payment of salary under subsection (1) unless the principal is also a constructional contractor. (1C) [Deleted by Act 21 of 2016 wef 01/04/2017] (2) A workman who wishes to recover any salary from a person liable under this section for the salary must, before lodging a claim for the salary under section 13 of the Employment Claims Act 2016, submit to the Commissioner, under section 3(1) of that Act, a mediation request for the mediation under Part 2 of that Act of every dispute for which the claim will be lodged.[21/2016] (2A) The workman must submit the mediation request to the Commissioner within 60 days after the date on which the salary becomes due for payment in accordance with Part 3.[21/2016] (2B) The Commissioner may extend the period under subsection (2A) within which the workman must submit the mediation request to the Commissioner.[21/2016] (2C) However, if a workman has lodged, before 1 April 2017, a claim under section 119 for any salary against a person liable under this section for the salary —(a) subsections (2), (2A) and (2B) do not apply to the recovery of the salary under that claim; and (b) instead, the repealed section 65(1C) and (2) as in force immediately before 1 April 2017 continues to apply to the recovery of the salary under that claim.[21/2016] (3) Nothing in this section prevents any principal or contractor or subcontractor, not being the employer, who as the result of a claim made under this section has paid any salary to a workman, from instituting civil proceedings for the recovery of the amount of salary so paid from the employer of that workman. (4) Nothing in this section prevents a workman from recovering salary under this Act from his or her employer instead of the principal or contractor or subcontractor. (5) The reference to principal in this section includes a reference to the Government or a statutory body or authority acting in the course of or in the discharge of its functions. —(1) Where a principal, in the course of or for the purposes of or in pursuance of or in furtherance of the interests of the principal’s trade or business, contracts with a contractor for the supply of labour or for the execution by or under the contractor of the whole or any part of any work undertaken by the principal, and any salary is due to any workman by the contractor or any subcontractor under the contractor for labour supplied or for work done in the course of the execution of such work, the principal and the contractor and any such subcontractor (not being the employer) are jointly and severally liable with the employer to pay the workman as if the workman had been immediately employed by the principal, and where salary is claimed from the principal, this Act (with the exception of section 33 relating to priority of salary) applies as if reference to the principal were substituted for reference to the employer, except that salary claimed is to be calculated with reference to the salary of the workman under the employer by whom the workman is immediately employed. (1A) No principal, contractor or subcontractor, not being the employer, is jointly and severally liable to any workman under subsection (1) for more than the salary earned in one month for work done by the employer. (1B) In the case of a contract for constructional work, the principal is not liable for the payment of salary under subsection (1) unless the principal is also a constructional contractor. (1C) [Deleted by Act 21 of 2016 wef 01/04/2017] (2) A workman who wishes to recover any salary from a person liable under this section for the salary must, before lodging a claim for the salary under section 13 of the Employment Claims Act 2016, submit to the Commissioner, under section 3(1) of that Act, a mediation request for the mediation under Part 2 of that Act of every dispute for which the claim will be lodged.[21/2016] (2A) The workman must submit the mediation request to the Commissioner within 60 days after the date on which the salary becomes due for payment in accordance with Part 3.[21/2016] (2B) The Commissioner may extend the period under subsection (2A) within which the workman must submit the mediation request to the Commissioner.[21/2016] (2C) However, if a workman has lodged, before 1 April 2017, a claim under section 119 for any salary against a person liable under this section for the salary —(a) subsections (2), (2A) and (2B) do not apply to the recovery of the salary under that claim; and (b) instead, the repealed section 65(1C) and (2) as in force immediately before 1 April 2017 continues to apply to the recovery of the salary under that claim.[21/2016] (3) Nothing in this section prevents any principal or contractor or subcontractor, not being the employer, who as the result of a claim made under this section has paid any salary to a workman, from instituting civil proceedings for the recovery of the amount of salary so paid from the employer of that workman. (4) Nothing in this section prevents a workman from recovering salary under this Act from his or her employer instead of the principal or contractor or subcontractor. (5) The reference to principal in this section includes a reference to the Government or a statutory body or authority acting in the course of or in the discharge of its functions.