In Malaysia, employees are legally entitled to annual leave under the Employment Act 1955.
Once leave is approved, an employer is not allowed to interfere with how an employee uses their time off. This means that an employer cannot demand personal information such as a live location, especially when the employee is not on duty.
Photo via Tech Advisor
Recently, a Malaysian woman shared her troubling experience online, claiming that her employer had requested she keep her live location turned on during her holiday. She had applied for annual leave but was told that approval would only be granted if she agreed to this condition.
The post, originally shared on Threads and later removed, quickly went viral and sparked debate among users who questioned whether such a request was even legal.
A woman working in the human resources industry responded to the incident in a TikTok video, explaining that employers have no right to ask for live location tracking when an employee is on approved annual leave.
“Employees are not required to give a reason for taking annual leave,” she clarified. “They are entitled to it. However, if the leave is applied for at the last minute and there are pressing deadlines, such as in cases where an employee claims to need time off to take a parent to the clinic, the employer might request some form of proof. Even then, it should not be a blanket requirement for a live location.”
Many social media users were outraged by the employer’s behaviour, calling it a violation of privacy. Some shared their thoughts, with one saying that this level of control was “psychopathic” and suggested the employee should leave the company.
Another said, “This is clearly a breach of privacy. If HR won’t do anything, report it to the labour department.” One user urged the employee to “hand in the resignation letter” while another commented that “something is fishy” and insisted that “no one needs to know your whereabouts on your day off.”
Others joked that the employee should “throw the Employment Act in their boss’s face” and walk away from such a toxic workplace.
While Malaysian labour laws protect your right to take leave without needing to explain your every move, situations like this show how trust between employers and employees can quickly break down.
If you were asked to share your live location during a holiday, would you agree to it or push back? How would you handle this kind of invasion of privacy?
