FROM SFIEU TO STIEU: TRADE UNION COLLECTIVE ACTION STRUGGLE IN SABAH, MALAYSIA

Abstract

This paper explains the research finding related to the struggle of SFIEU to STIEU and its relationship to the idea of Virtual Paper and Employment Museum in Sabah. The idea based on the fact related to collective action as a potential medium to balance the power possessed by capitalists especially to advance the interests of workers.The dynamic nature of collective action and its development in the state of Sabah will be explained through the formation of the SFI virtual museum which is the struggle of workers from the Sabah Forest Industries Employee Union (SFIEU) to the Sabah Timber Industries Employee Union (STIEU) since the 1990s. This study was developed by applying the combinations of interview and content analysis approach by relating the development of unions to the attitude of capitalists and the influence of state government policies. Despite various assistance given to workers by the union at the national level, efforts to establish a union and subsequently obtain recognition could not be implemented until finally SFI had to be closed. This fact is an extraordinary phenomenon that proves that the state of Sabah holds various forms of social phenomenon that can be used as a lesson for future generations. Further research in various other fields needs to be done to assess its impact on the state's development problem which is relatively late compared to other states in Malaysia even though Sabah has a variety of valuable resources.