[1] The applicants in this case were musicians formerly employed by the Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra (the MPO), the second respondent. The applicants sought an order of certiorari to quash an award of the Industrial Court [reported at [2016] 1 MELR 180; [2015] 2 LNS 1034], which ruled that the applicants were not permanent employees and which rejected the claim by the applicants that they had been unfairly dismissed.

[2] This Court dismissed the application for certiorari for the reasons set out here.

Background Facts

[3] The material background facts of this case are as follows.

[4] Each of the applicants had been employed by the MPO pursuant to a series of employment contracts. Some of the applicants had been employed since 1998. Each of these employment contracts were expressed to be for a fixed term. These contracts were renewed upon the expiry of their tenure. In the case of the fifth applicant, for example, his employment contract had been renewed six times