Fix the flawed social work profession bill

Social work is unique because it deals with human problems within the societal context.

Guided by professional values and ethics, social workers use their knowledge of human behaviour, social systems, laws and policies to assist clients in navigating complex structures like the court system, as well as providing psychosocial care and support.

The decisions they make may affect a client’s life forever. That is why they need to be trained and supported, so that they can confidently support their clients.

In Malaysia, social workers are employed by diverse government agencies. These include the Ministry of Women, Family and Community Development, its Department of Social Welfare at national, state and district levels, the Ministry of Health, and the National Anti-Drugs Agency.

They also work in civil society groups, such as in shelters for survivors of intimate partner violence.

The social work profession bill, under development since 2010, is critical to strengthen and bring professionalism to social work in the country. This proposed legislation will establish clear standards, accountability and a code of ethics, ensuring that social workers are supported by a structured framework. It is targeted to be presented to Parliament at the end of 2025.

Sadly, like most critical legislation that affects children, people with disabilities, women and marginalised persons, the process by which the bill is currently being developed lacks transparency, accountability and professionalism.

There is no provision for enabling civil society to review the draft and contribute to strengthening it.

The entire process for such important community legislation is strangely placed under the Official Secrets Act (OSA).

The Ministry of Women, Family and Community Development Ministry is planning a two-hour town hall in Putrajaya to explain the bill to other government agencies, academicians, civil society groups, companies and relevant international organisations.

While we welcome this town hall, it is of limited value. It is a face-to-face meeting with large numbers and usually there is no access to read the bill. Experience with past town halls suggests that very limited time is allocated for feedback, and it is uncertain if the concerns are heard.

It is also not inclusive, as it is very difficult and expensive for those who live in Sabah, Sarawak, Kelantan, Penang and other states to travel just to be able to offer a few words, if at all.

Town halls must be more meaningful, more frequent and conducted online. A town hall meeting must not be a rubber-stamp exercise to say, yes, we have engaged and consulted civil society regarding this bill.

On 15 April, the ministry had shared some aspects of the bill with a few NGOs. The Social Worker Alliance Malaysia has discussed the bill and has many concerns regarding it. A list of all our concerns can be found here.

Of the many concerns, there is one that is most critical, one that overrides all the others. This concern is that the bill only covers social workers and social work outside government agencies. It does not compulsorily apply to social workers and social work in government agencies and ministries.

Bear in mind that a large proportion of social work takes place in government agencies; especially in critical areas like child protection, domestic violence, those living in poverty and stateless individuals.

It makes no logical sense to exempt the bill from applying to the Department of Social Welfare and other government officers. In fact, this is what the bill was originally designed for – to strengthen professional social work within government agencies.

Imagine for a moment that we have a medical practitioners bill that only applies to private doctors but not to government doctors. Imagine that private doctors are registered, credentialed and monitored – they need to show proof of qualification as a doctor, and their practice and professionalism is regulated. But those doctors working in government agencies, the Ministry of Health, are exempted from the legislation – they are not required to prove to the public that they have the same minimum qualifications as private doctors, and they do not have to follow the same professional standards. This would be ludicrous, to put it mildly.

In its current form, the social work profession bill is seriously and fundamentally flawed.

Civil society is not against the government or intentionally obstructive. We want what is best for society. There has been an increasing tendency in the development or revision of legislation to include an ouster clause to exempt civil servants from their responsibilities and from action when they fail. This must stop.

In the past our elected representatives, the DAP and PKR MPs, would have championed this. But now we only hear their silence and complicit agreement with failed legislation.

We are reluctant to delay a vital bill that has been so long in its process. But it is better to fix this bill than pass a non-meaningful bill that does not solve our problems, one that is not useful.

We appeal to MPs to please get involved to fix this bill rapidly, before it reaches Parliament.

We lead Asean this year. But in reality, we are Asean followers, left decades behind our neighbours in enacting a meaningful social work profession bill.

This is probably one of the single most important bills we can pass for our children and for the nation. We appeal to MPs and the ministry to correct the failures and ensure that a meaningful bill is passed.

Signatories