PETALING JAYA: Following Indonesia’s decision to stop sending workers to Malaysia, the Malaysian Employers Federation (MEF) has urged all employers to look at other countries for labour.
MEF president Datuk Dr Syed Hussain Syed Husman said there are many economic issues to consider and businesses cannot be suffering from labour issues.
“Indonesia’s suspension of sending its workers to Malaysia will prolong the chronic labour shortage faced by all sectors of our economy,” he said, adding that efforts by businesses to return their operations to pre-pandemic levels will be hampered by the suspension.
He was commenting on Indonesia’s decision to stop sending workers to Malaysia, alleging a breach in the memorandum of understanding between the two countries.
Syed Hussain said the Joint Committee on the Management of Foreign Workers should review the conditions under the Labour Recalibration Programme to regularise foreign illegals in the country to allow more illegal immigrants to participate in the programme.
He added that the Maid Online System was not supposed to apply to Indonesian workers.
In this regard, Indonesian ambassador Hermono said his country is willing to cancel the agreement with Malaysia on the intake of maids.
He said this was because Malaysia had failed to adhere to the memorandum of understanding on Indonesian maids, which was signed just three months ago.
Meanwhile, the Human Resources Ministry said in a statement yesterday that it will hold an urgent meeting with the Home Ministry on the matter, and discussions will be held immediately to address the issues.
Indonesia is an important source for the supply of foreign workers as about 35% came from that country, while the supply of domestic workers is even more critical as 70% were from there.
Syed Hussain said: “Considering the number of workers from Indonesia employed here, the government must iron out outstanding matters to ensure the smooth supply of foreign workers is not disrupted. Employers have endured shortages of foreign workers for a long time and this has caused operational disruptions to businesses.”
He added that some businesses in the manufacturing sector have had to turn down new orders for fear of not being able to meet deadlines.
“Construction companies have had to bear penalties for late deliveries. Restaurants are being bombarded with complaints from customers for slow services, and hotels have also been criticised for not being able to check in their guests on time due to delays in getting rooms ready.”
Syed Hussain noted even plantation companies have suffered huge losses due to shortage of harvesters.
There have already been proposals for special approval to be given to utilise labour available within Malaysia.
“We can source for the required labour from among refugees and paroled prisoners. These people, with special approval from the government, may be deployed immediately to help address the acute shortage until the new foreign workers arrive,” he said.
It was also previously reported that there are about 168,000 refugees holding United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees cards, and more than 60% of them are potentially employable.
“Employers need new workers urgently to assist in their recovery efforts. We need to look for quick solutions as stop-gap measures until issues involving foreign labour recruitment are resolved,” he added.
