Gig economy workers in Malaysia are not included under the definition of a worker under the Employment Act 1955 (Act 265); Labour Ordinance (Sabah Chapter 67) and the Labour Ordinance (Sarawak Chapter 76) according to Deputy Human Resource Minister Datuk Awang Hashim. Malay Mail reports that according to Hashim there was no record or filing of labour cases regarding this group of gig workers that could be used as a benchmark that would allow gig economy workers to enjoy similar benefits as workers as clearly defined under the country’s labour law.

“Under the gig employment system and contract for service as agreed, gig economy workers are not subject to the National Wages Consultative Council Act 2011 and the Minimum Wages Order 2020,” Hashim said. However, he said that the government, under the Self-Employment Social Security Act 2017, provided social security protection to self-employed individuals, including gig economy workers such as those doing food delivery and e-hailing services (ordering a taxi, limousine, or any other form of transportation online), if they made contributions under the act.