The definition of 'workman' under the Industrial Relations Act 1967 excludes directors representing the mind and will of the company.

[1] The claimant commenced employment with the company as the Managing Director on 18 December 2012 with the monthly salary of RM34,000.00 per month. This is based on the employment agreement dated 4 December 2012 entered into between the claimant and the company, Nexus Deepwater Engineering (M) Sdn Bhd (1st company). By an Award No 787 of 2014, Nexus Engineering & Global Technologies (M) Sdn Bhd (NEGTSB) was joined as Co-Respondent on 23 June 2014. At all material time, the claimant and Mr Nadeem Muhamad Siddiq (COW1), a shareholder of the company and a Director in Nexus Engineering & Global Technologies (M) Sdn Bhd (NEGTSB) has known each other since Nexus Engineering & Global Technologies (M) Sdn Bhd (NEGTSB) was a sub-contractor for the claimant's ex-employer JP Kenny on September 2010.

[2] There are two version of fact on how the claimant became involved with the company. As stated in para 2 of Statement of Case that he was invited to join the company by the Directors of both the Companies vide a letter of offer and Employment Agreement signed by the claimant on 4 December 2013. The claimant is a senior engineer by profession has taken up the offer by the Companies and claimed that he was also subsequently invited by Nexus Engineering & Global Technologies (M) Sdn Bhd (NEGTSB) to became one of the Director for the Company.

[3] The claimant had left his previous position as a Senior Project Manager in JPKenny a reputable oil and gas engineering company which he was with for 15 years to take up the offer from the company.

[4] On the other hand, the company states in para 5.2 of Statement in Reply that the claimant offered himself to work with COW1 as the claimant saw future potential and good return in opening a pipeline company. The company further state that in order to develop and adventure into the pipeline business together COW1 had offered the claimant who is holding engineering licence issued by Board of Engineers Malaysia to take care of the company set up by COW1 and another shareholder A Bakar A Wahab as his own company in good faith and in return, he promise to kick start a major project in Vietnam for the company. Upon accepting the offer, the claimant appointed himself as a Manager Director of the company.

[5] The company states that the claimant is not a workman within the contemplation of s 2 of Industrial Relations Act 1967 since he was always representing the directing mind and will of the company. The claimant was given full and/or absolute power to act for the company as he deemed fit and appropriate at the material times.

[6] The company denies that there is any salary due or unpaid as alleged by the claimant. It is within the claimant's full knowledge that he would only get his salary paid by the company after he started generating income for the company in particular by kick starting the Vietnam project. The two payments that were made were never meant for the claimant's salary in December 2012 or January 2013 as there was no salary slips issued to that effect. The payment was for other purpose that was known to the claimant.

[7] The claimant's job scope was to run and manage the company, to source for business opportunities and to make any commercial decision for the company, most importantly to generate income for the company. The claimant was also responsible to obtain PETRONAS related licensing or projects to promote in the pipeline industry as well as to lead the company in developing pipeline business.

[8] The claimant's problem started in January 2013 when he was not paid any salary. By the third week of February 2013, the company vide Nexus Engineering & Global Technologies