PETALING JAYA: A contractor has agreed to pay RM3.8 million in overdue wages to 600 workers for the construction of a factory at the Kota Kinabalu Industrial Park in Sabah.
Deputy human resources minister Mustapha Sakmud said the contractor will pay the salary arrears today and tomorrow after an agreement was reached with the Sabah labour department yesterday, Harian Metro reported.
“The salaries should be paid in the first week of each month but there was a delay in the payment in March, leading to a conflict between dissatisfied workers and the employer.
“The Sabah labour department director and the Manggatal police chief then held a discussion with representatives of the workers and employer. The employer agreed to pay the outstanding wages on April 17 and 18,” he was quoted as saying.
Mustapha said officers from the Sabah labour department will be present at the construction site today and tomorrow to ensure the workers received their salaries.
In a video which was widely shared on social media yesterday, some of the construction workers were seen assaulting three men at the Shinsung E&G office, within the SK Nexilis project site on Saturday.
Sabah industrial development and entrepreneurship minister Phoong Jin Zhe was reported to have said that the workers were disappointed by the delay in the payment of their salaries.
“They demanded immediate payment and became aggressive,” he said, adding that all parties involved should not resort to violence and instead, come to an amicable settlement.
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