KUALA LUMPUR – Ministers and government officers responsible for foreign worker approval and entry into Malaysia must be investigated when labourers arrive only to be left stranded without jobs, MCA said.
The ministries that approve foreign worker recruitment are the “real root of the problem” as they enable the entry of migrant labourers, the party’s vice-president Datuk Tan Teik Cheng said.
“The government needs to take stringent action, not only in fining companies that fail to hire foreign workers a month after their arrival, but must also investigate and severely penalise the related ministers and officers who hastily approved the entry of these foreign workers into the country.
“These persons in power are the root of the problem,” Tan said in a statement.
He did not name the ministries, but it is known that the Home Ministry handles the approval process for foreign workers, while the Human Resources Ministry deals with the foreign worker quota required.
He was commenting on the proposal by Plantation and Commodities Minister Datuk Seri Johari Ghani to fine companies RM30,000 per worker if the firm fails to provide jobs to foreign workers within a month of their arrival.
“Although employers and agencies have to shoulder certain responsibilities on this issue, the real root of this problem rests in the hasty approval granted by the ministers and officers in the related ministry that enabled the entry of these foreign workers.
“The public has reason to question: Why did the minister and ministry officers fail to do their homework and approve the entry of these foreign workers without stringent review?” Tan added.
He called for investigations to reveal information such as why no jobs were available for foreign workers after approval for their recruitment was given and the type of work they were supposed to be hired for.
Tan said ministers and officers also have to bear a big responsibility “for their hastiness and incompetence”, as they have tarnished the reputation of the country and government.
“Not only have they caused Malaysia to be perceived as a destination of forced labour, they have also caused other foreign workers to think twice about coming to work in our country again,” he said, stressing that action should not be limited only to errant companies and recruitment agencies.
Johari on January 4 announced his proposal for the RM30,000 fine per stranded foreign worker, which he also presented to the cabinet.
He said the issue impacts all sectors, including the plantation sector, which is facing a labour shortage.
The minister raised the proposal following media reports on December 25 regarding the detention of 171 foreign workers who walked to the Bayu Damai police station in Pengerang, Johor, to lodge a report against their agent, who allegedly failed to provide them with jobs.
Last year, there were also reports of Bangladeshi workers cleared for entry into Malaysia but left stranded after arriving at KLIA. Then human resources minister V. Sivakumar slammed employers for “manipulating” the foreign workers’ quota and hiring more workers than needed.
Johari, in pushing his proposal to fine companies, also said the recruitment of foreign workers must not be exported and turned into a business.
The Federation of Malaysian Manufacturers, meanwhile, has urged the government to probe the matter thoroughly before blaming companies. – January 6, 2024