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PETALING JAYA: The government will make amendments to the Infectious Disease Prevention and Control Act of 1988 to impose tougher penalties against anyone found to be in violation of standard operating procedure (SOP) to slow the spread of Covid-19.
Prime Minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin said that the Emergency Management Technical Committee has examined the provisions of the law to allow stricter and faster implementation of the SOP.
“Following standard operating procedures in workplaces, worker’s neighborhoods, business premises, and factories is critical to breaking the chain of Covid-19 infections.
“Enforcement must be improved to ensure compliance with SOPs,” he said in a special speech on Thursday (February 4).
Under the amended law, companies that violate SOPs will be ordered immediately shut down.
Legal action will also be taken against business owners, franchisees and operators, as well as other interested parties.
He said those who repeatedly violate SOPs will also face higher fines and jail time.
Public officials, including department heads, will also face disciplinary action if they violate the Work from Home (WFH) policy.
Amendments were also made to the Minimum Standards of Housing and Workers’ Services Act of 1990 that will also require employers to prepare more conducive housing for their workers.
“They will be required to provide accommodation that meets the standards, to bear all the costs of accommodation, moving and control of their workers, to supervise their foreign labor at the workplace and in their homes, as well as to ensure for agents to prepare accommodations that meet public health standards and requirements, “he said.
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