Malaysia is one of Asia's biggest employers of foreign labour. But recently, cases of deaths, abuse and forced labour have come to light. What is going on? Who is protecting these migrant workers?
The influx of foreign workers is nothing new. It started with workers from
Indonesia, and now hundreds of thousands of workers from India, Bangladesh,
Nepal, Myanmar, Vietnam and China also see Malaysia as their `promised land’.
<p><b>BETWEEN TWO POSSIBILITIES</b></p>
<p>Their overwhelming numbers reflect that this nation of ours is a goldmine for
the foreign workers or the nation lacks manpower and is dependent on them.</p>
<p>Wherever one go, be it construction sites, plantations, farms, restaurants,
markets, air-conditioned offices, houses and other locations, they are indispensable.</p>
<p>"The figure is staggering for a small nation like Malaysia. But what we
fear even more than their overwhelming numbers is how to keep them in check.
What would they do when the country can no longer offer them a job, would they
be contributing to the high crime rates and social woes like what we are seeing
now?," asked Fu.</p>
<p>The ministry of Internal Security recently stated that the foreigners have
not only inundated the domestic employment market, but they are also filling
up our jails, lock-ups and detention centres all over the nation.</p>
<p>Out of the over 49,000 prisoners, about 24,000 or almost half of them are foreigners.
Therefore it is not strange if Malaysians feel uncomfortable with their presence.</p>
<p><b>WHERE ARE THE LOCALS</b></p>
<p>Malaysians also share the deputy minister’s concern over the ominous presence
of foreigners.</p>
<p>Nonetheless, is there anything that can be done to reduce our dependence on
foreigners?</p>
<p>While the government has asked the plantation industries and others to find
ways to reduce their dependence on foreign workforce, these employers remain
defiant in most cases.</p>
<p>The response from them is as expected. No locals want to work in plantations
or construction sites or even as maids.</p>
<p>Locals shy away from these sectors probably not because they are too choosy
but because of the low wages and poor terms of employment. Nonetheless, the
foreigners just grab any offer, as they are certainly better off than back in
their home land.</p>
<p>It may be annoying to hear foreigners ridicule Malaysians as "2M",
Malas (lazy) and manja (pampered). Maybe there is some truth in this, that is
why foreign workers are thus favoured!</p>
<p><b>MONITOR CLOSELY</b></p>
<p>The adviser to the Federation of Malaysian Consumer Associations (FOMCA), Prof
Dr Hamdan Adnan felt that the influx of foreign workers has come to a head and
the government must monitor the situation closely.</p>
<p>"Two of the sectors that are highly dependent on foreign workers are construction
and plantation. Therefore when an employer applies to recruit foreign workers,
careful consideration must be made on whether to allow the recruitment.</p>
<p>"The employer beforehand must furnish proof that no locals are available,"
stressed Prof Hamdan.</p>
<p><b>NO MORE EXCUSES</b></p>
<p>He is also of the opinion that an employer can no longer give excuse like locals
lacking in discipline and seeking high wages.</p>
<p>"In villages road workers can get paid up to RM100 daily but how come
the same rate cannot be paid for those working in the cities? Discipline shouldn’t
be a problem as it can be addressed," he added.</p>
<p>The employers cannot take the easy way out by hiring foreign workers to save
cost and must also bear in mind that they have to fork out a considerable sum
to bring them in legally.</p>
<p>"Furthermore the nation has to bear huge losses as billions of dollars
flow out when these workers remit their earnings," said Prof Hamdan.</p>
<p>At the same time, he suggested that the Human Resource Department carry out
a survey on the human resource utilisation on the sectors badly in need of workers.</p>
<p>Training, he said, is an area that must be given consideration to ensure efficient
utilisation of the local manpower.</p>
<p><b>DEVELOPING LOCAL HUMAN RESOURCE</b></p>
<p>The main factor considered a pillar for the development of a nation is its
human resource and this is the second of the five pillars for the national mission
under the Ninth Malaysia Plan (9MP).</p>
<p>Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi when tabling the 9MP on 31
March 2006 had said; "We need to act fast. We have less than 15 years to
achieve vision 2020. We have to make sure this remaining time period as the
most productive and meaningful in achieving our goals."</p>
<p>Therefore, whether we succeed or fail in developing our human resources would
be well reflected in the number of foreign workers who still dominate the employment
opportunities in the nation.</p>
<p>At the same time, we should not just think of creating intellectuals and neglect
the need to produce blue-collar workers.</p>
<p>The unemployed graduates and school leavers numbering around 90,000 is a case
in point that reflect we are not lacking in human resource. But just where are
these people?</p>
<p>The same goes to the 242,190 or 3.8 percent of the 6.3 million students who
failed to complete their education up to form five. Again the question remains,
where are they?</p>
<p>These youngsters, though they may not have excelled in their studies, can still
be trained as skilled or semi-skilled workers. Those concerned parties should
be earnest enough to trace these dropouts and train them up to reduce the dependence
on foreign workers.</p>
<p>– BERNAMA</p>
<p><i>Source: http://www.bernama.com.my/bernama/v3/news.php?id=275091</i>
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