22. (1) No employer shall during any one month make to an employee an advance or advances of wages not already earned by such employee which exceeds in the aggregate the amount of wages which the employee earned in the preceding month from his employment with such employer, or if he has not been so long in the employment of such employer, the amount which he is likely to earn in such employment during one month, unless such advance is made to the employee—

(a) to enable him to purchase a house or to build or improve a house;

(b) to enable him to purchase land;

(c) (Deleted by Act A1419);

(d) to enable him to purchase a motorcar, a motorcycle or a bicycle;

(da) to enable him to purchase shares of the employer’s business offered for sale by the employer;

(db) to enable him to purchase a computer;

(dc) to enable him to pay for medical expenses for himself or his immediate family members;

(dd) to enable him to pay for daily expenses pending receipt of any periodical payments for temporary disablement under the Employees’ Social Security Act 1969 [Act 4];

(de) to enable him to pay for educational expenses for himself or his immediate family members;

(e) for any other purpose—

(i) in respect of which an application in writing is made by the employer to the Director General;

(ii) which is, in the opinion of the Director General, beneficial to the employee; and

(iii) which is approved in writing by the Director General, provided that in granting such approval, the Director General may make such modifications thereto or impose such conditions thereon as he may deem proper;

(f) for such other purpose as the Minister may, from time to time, by notification in the Gazette, specify either generally in respect of all employees, or only in respect of any particular employee, or any class, category or description of employees.

(2) For the purposes of this section, .immediate family members. means the employees’ parents, children, siblings or any other person under the employee’s guardianship.

Wages not due for absence from work through imprisonment or attendance in court

23. Wages shall not become payable to or recoverable by any employee from his employer for or on account of the term of any sentence of imprisonment undergone by him or for any period spent by him in custody or for or on account of any period spent by him in going to or returning from prison or other place of custody or for or on account of any period spent by him in going to, attending before or returning from a court otherwise than as a witness on his employer’s behalf.