Malaysia to look for better mechanism for hiring foreign workers
Malaysia’s Human Resources Minister, V. Sivakumar said the government is looking for the best mechanism to allow employers to hire foreign workers without going through agencies. He said that several efforts have been taken to ensure that no agencies are making high profits from hiring foreign workers. He added that Home Minister Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail had gone to Nepal, Indonesia and Bangladesh to discuss the matter.
The National Association of Private Employment Agencies Malaysia (Papsma) objected to agency-monopoly that uses the existing digital system to exploit the influx of foreign workers, especially from Bangladesh. On Wednesday, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim said the practice of using agents when hiring foreign workers should be relooked. Sivakumar said the move would help to reduce the cost borne by employers.
In a related development, the Malaysian Employers Federaton, MEF said not using agents will save 80% in workers’ recruitment costs. Its president Syed Hussain Syed Husman described the move as “timely” as employers were facing many challenges in managing the cost of running their operations. He said the reduction in costs would resolve one of the major indicators of forced labour faced by Malaysian employers – debt bondage. Syed Hussain said due to the involvement of agents, foreign workers were left with little choice but to take high-interest loans or mortgage their properties to pay high recruitment fees, thus putting them into “debt bondage”. He suggested that the government allow employers to formally recruit refugees who held valid United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees cards. He said employers would not incur the cost of bringing in workers if refugees were allowed to work. Also, these refugees, if employed, would be required to pay taxes.
