Malaysia’s federal government is set to table a landmark amendment bill at the lower house of Parliament, that could permanently compel gig-based tech companies to provide their workers the rights and privileges enjoyed by formal employees, reports Malay Mail. The amendment bill, among others, proposes six standards that would help define an employee and their relation to the employer under the ‘Employment Act 1955’, a key provision that may force many of today’s online-based companies to compensate workers with benefits that come with formal employment, like health insurance and pension contributions. Under Section 101C, the bill proposes that a worker will be deemed an “employee” if the manner and hours of work is subject to the control or direction of another person.

Any worker will also be considered an employee if they are provided with tools, materials, or equipment by another person to perform work, where the work constitutes an integral part of another person’s business, and if the work is performed solely for the benefit of another person. Under the last subsection of the proposed Section 101C(1), any payment received for a gig work and that constitutes the majority of the worker’s income, would automatically make the person an employee. The amendment will also widen the scope of definition as to who constitutes an employer, using the same set of criteria to define an employee. This means, among other things, anyone who controls or directs either the manner of work of another person or the hours of work of another person, is considered an employer.