BANGI: Stricter regulations will be imposed on the entry of foreign workers to prevent Malaysia from being accused of practising forced labour and engaging in human trafficking activities, says Plantations and Commodities Minister Datuk Seri Johari Abdul Ghani.
The strict regulation is necessary as a measure to address emerging issues related to foreign workers, such as allegations of fraud, forced labour and human trafficking, he said.
Johari also stressed that foreign workers meant for the agriculture industry were not allowed to work in other sectors.
The entry of foreign workers into the agriculture industry is specifically to work on farms, and entry into other sectors is not permitted, he said.
He said those bringing in foreign workers must ensure suitable and adequate accommodation was provided for them.
Johari added that the government had agreed to allow the hiring of foreign workers specifically for the plantation sector.
He said this was relayed to him by the minister of Home Affairs who decided that only the plantation sector was currently allowed to hire foreign workers.
"The Ministry of Home Affairs and the Ministry of Human Resources have agreed that foreign workers are no longer allowed to enter the country except for the plantation industry. This industry is open to take in foreign labour.
"We want to ensure that every company operating palm oil plantations, especially those under the Ministry of Agriculture and Commodities, meets specific requirements for foreign workers working on the farm.
"We aim to ensure that any party bringing in foreign workers provides proper and adequate accommodation. We do not want foreign workers to be perceived as residing in conditions that could lead to accusations of forced labour," he said.
The minister also stressed that if a company brought foreign workers into the country and there was no work for them, the person who brought them in would still have to pay their wages.
According to Johari, Malaysia needs about 40,000 foreign workers for the agricultural industry as of December last year.
He said any approval in the hiring of foreign workers must be preceded by a verification process where certain benchmarks and calculations are done based on the farm's size, the location of the farm, existing workforce, and how many more workers they need.
Meanwhile, Johari said workers needed to be informed about their actual job during the interview session and should not involve loans to come to this country.
Agents who fail to comply would face consequences.
"Issues like these need to be addressed from time to time because indirectly, the plantation industry will receive foreign workers genuinely interested in working in this sector and not those working in other sectors.
"This is also to maintain the country's image, ensuring that it is not categorised as a nation involved in emerging issues like alleged human trafficking or forced labour, which could lead to our products being restricted from being exported," he said.
