N Gopal Kishnam of the National Union of Transport Equipment and Allied Industry Workers said the new federation would be called the Malaysian Federation of Trade Unions, or MFTU, with a pro tem committee already formed.
Gopal is MFTU’s secretary-general under the pro tem committee.
In a statement, he said MTUC’s dissolution bore serious implications for the labour movement with workers losing key representation at national and international levels.
“At this critical moment, Malaysian workers deserve a renewed sense of hope. One that is progressive, inclusive and firmly committed to defending workers’ rights and dignity.
“Our aspiration is to build a broad-based, cross-sectoral federation representing workers across Peninsular Malaysia, Sabah and Sarawak, to be registered under the Trade Unions Act,” he said.
Gopal said MFTU would focus on championing workers and unions through capacity and alliance building, digital unionism, policy research, international engagement and regional cooperation.
“We expect to fulfil the legal requirements for registration by the end of July, to be followed by a founding congress before the end of the year.
“We call upon trade unions and workers who share the vision of a democratic, progressive and united labour movement to join us in this important effort.”
Among the unions represented in the pro tem committee are the Sarawak Bank Employees Union (SBEU), National Union of Seafarers Peninsular Malaysia (NUSPM), Malayan Nurses Union (MNU), Sabah Medical Services Union (SMSU), and Electronics Industry Employees’ Union Northern Region (EIEUNR).
The other unions involved represent workers in the electronics, textile, printing, paper products, service and timber industries.
The pro tem committee is headed by SBEU CEO Andrew Lo with Ikmal Azam Thanaraj of NUSPM serving as his deputy.
SMSU president Ajulahin Japin, SBEU deputy president Joseph Kong, MNU president Saaidah Athman and EIEUNR president Razi Rahim are vice-presidents representing Sabah, Sarawak, the public sector and private sector, respectively.
The Registrar of Societies provisionally dissolved the MTUC on May 7 following its repeated failure to comply with directives to submit audited financial statements and account books.
This includes information related to finances or assets received from foreign sources between 2020 and 2025.
MTUC, the country’s largest umbrella body representing trade unions and workers’ interests, has the right to submit an appeal to the home minister within 30 days from the date the order was issued.