The Legal 500 > Asia Pacific > Malaysia > Labour and employment

The labour and employment team at Lee Hishammuddin Allen & Gledhill is led by Heng Seng Lim and Dato Thavalingam C. Thavarajah. Providing clients with compliance advice on legislation and common law rights, it also reviews policies and documentation, covers managerial prerogatives, and counsels on trade disputes and collective agreements. The client portfolio features a substantive number of Fortune 500 companies as well as family-owned enterprises and non-commercial entities. Shariffullah Abdul Majeed advises on the dismissal of senior employees and internal investigations while senior associate Amardeep Singh is recommended for immigration law and the  management of foreign workers.

Handling an increasing quotient of contract renegotiations, the labour and employment offering at Shearn Delamore & Co is led by Sivabalah Nadarajah, a specialist in trade disputes, collective bargaining and industrial action. The 'amazing' Suganthi Singam handles both contentious and non-contentious matters, Reena Enbasegaram is known for her work in disciplinary action procedures, and Raymond Low is recommended for health and safety litigation. Notably, the firm also pursues allegations of sexual misconduct in the workplace and recently acted in this capacity for Malayan Banking Berhad.

Siva Kumar Kanagasabai, 'one of the best HR lawyers in the business' and compliance expert  Selvamalar Alagaratnam orchestrate the labour and employment team at Skrine. Acting for major clients such as Unilever, Samsung and DHL, it handles legislative compliance, common law rights, managerial prerogatives and collective agreements. The offering also covers the complexities of staff termination (including the removal of senior employees) and successfully acted in this capacity for the U.S. embassy in Kuala Lumpur. Clients can also benefit from the firm's 'concise and high-quality advice' in relation to the transition and migration of workers as well as its strong track record in trade union disputes.

The labour and employment team at Zul Rafique & Partners advises clients on industrial matters such as strikes and picketing. In addition, it handles non-contentious issues such as the establishment of pension funds, share option schemes and various remunerative utilities. It is led by Jayasingam A/L Poopalasingam, Wong Keat Ching and the 'highly skilled' Thavaselvi Pararajasingam, respective specialists in litigation, disciplinary matters and constructive dismissal. A notable highlight concerns its successful defense of Public Bank Berhad in the Industrial Court, a case concerning false representation in support of a renovation loan. The firm's client portfolio includes PricewaterhouseCoopers, Malaysia Airlines and AEON Credit Service.

Christopher & Lee Ong's labour and employment team is orchestrated by four leads: Kelvin Kho, Rubini Murugesan, Yau Yee Ming and Han Li Meng. In essence, it stands as an integrated group of lawyers from corporate, commercial and litigation backgrounds. Notable for serving start-ups and new ventures, it regularly advises on the sector implications of compensation programmes, remuneration packages, corporate acquisitions and business integrations. To complement this, it also handles workforce restructuring (including transfers or migration), health and safety, anti-corruption, data protection and cybersecurity. The firm recently assisted Sellbytel Service in a hiring case concerning the ownership rights of 'successful bidders'.

Described as providing a 'unique service', Donovan & Ho's labour and employment team counts L’Oreal within its client portfolio. Led by Donovan Cheah, it handles disputes as well as a broad spectrum of non-contentious matters. Specifically, it assists with internal misconduct investigations (including fraud and breach of fiduciary duties) as well as retrenchment and closure of businesses. One notable recent case is its defence of a medical device manufacturer in a series of unfair dismissal claims. Other industries served include: hospitality, food and beverages, IT, manufacturing, chemicals, professional services and construction.

Advising companies on all aspects of employment law and industrial Relations, the team at Rahmat Lim & Partners maintains a strong relationship with Allen & Gledhill LLP, Singapore. This means that clients can benefit from extensive legal resources for matters such as EPF and SOCSO contributions, union recognition, disciplinary actions, terminations of service and misconduct. Lead partner Jack Yow, a 'well-rounded' expert in industrial relations, advises on the legal implications of poor performance, redundancy, voluntary separation schemes and restructuring. The firm recently represented Kontron Design Manufacturing Services in an unfair dismissal claim at the Industrial Court.

Known for his work  in redundancy and retrenchment, Ravindra Kumar Rengasamy heads the labour and employment offering at Raja, Darryl & Loh. In broad terms, the team covers key issues such as collective agreements, mutual separation schemes, contract assessments, retrenchment and the structure of performance review plans. Notably, it has recently advised on an increasing number of cost-cutting and staff rationalisation exercises triggered by the government's implementation of the Movement Control Order.

Led by the 'brilliant' Marcus van Geyzel, the employment team at Peter Ling & van Geyzel is described as being 'extremely responsive' and 'timely' in its delivery of service. With a portfolio that contains numerous blue chip clients such as General Electric, its recent work includes advice on the dismissal of senior personnel and the settlement of  unfair dismissal claims.

The Labour and Industrial Disputes team at Shook Lin & Bok is directed by Romesh Abraham, a specialist in employment and administrative law as well as general tort and insurance claims. He is supported by Mehala Marimuthoo, an experienced litigation partner advising on issues such as recruitment policy, retrenchment, outsourcing and performance management. In addition, the offering covers internal disciplinary matters such as dismissal proceedings and social security entitlement.

Tay & Partners' Leonard Yeoh leads the firm's offering in employment & industrial relations. Serving clients in both contentious and non contentious matters, it covers issues such as collective agreements,  union disputes, immigration, wrongful dismissal, sexual harassment and retrenchment. A substantive portion of the firm's work is carried out for multinationals, local (and international) banks,  government agencies and domestic companies.

Azmi & Associates advise on labour law; representing clients in the negotiation of collective agreements. It also provides the employment law input for various corporate or contractual matters and represents clients on  employer-employee disputes. Melinda Marie D’Angelus has experience in advising trade unions and employers in contentious and non-contentious matters.

Led by the 'very sharp and accurate' Gan Khong Aik, the Employment and Industrial Relations team at Gan Partnership is said to provide clients with: 'holistic and comprehensive advice'. Notably, the boutique firm concentrates on dispute resolution and counts Philip Morris and ExxonMobil Exploration & Production Inc within its portfolio. A highlight is the firm's work for United Overseas Bank on an allegation of unlawful dismissal.

Three leads direct the labour and employment offering at Josephine, L K Chow & Co: Cyndi Chow Li Kian, Edward Saw Keat Leong and Josephine Ng Bee Leng. With a particular emphasis on manufacturing, it has significant experience representing both employers and workers in unfair dismissal cases at the Industrial and appellate courts. The firm counts Sapura Acergy is a key client.

Raymond Mah leads the Employment Law & Industrial Relations Department at MahWengKwai & Associates. Handling contentious issues such as unfair dismissal and disciplinary procedures, it also assists with contract development and the implications of industrial disputes. Recent work has included advice on cost-cutting, salary reduction and retrenchment. Diana Cheak and Janessa Kok are key names to note.

Zaid Ibrahim & Co (a member of ZICO Law) (a member of ZICO Law) provides a range of employment advice to its corporate clients, in addition to handling various disputes. Team head Yong Hon Cheong assists clients on both advisory matters as well as conducting cases in the Industrial Court and senior associate Sivagami Sivalingam focuses on contentious matters.