Accommodation for foreign workers soon to be compulsory in Malaysia

Set to be submitted to the Malaysian Parliament by next January, the amendment to the Employment Act 1955 (Act 265) is aimed at making it compulsory for employers to provide accommodation facilities for foreign workers.

Human Resource minister Datuk Seri Richard Riot Jaem said: “Upon approval, I believe employers will make a beeline to seek accommodations which are managed by a company approved by the home ministry and the ministry of human resources,” he told Bernama, after visiting a foreign workers’ centralised accommodation service facility in Mantin. He was joined by ministry’s secretary-general Datuk Seri Adnan Ab Rahman and MYR Relocation Management’s chief executive officer M. Kamalan.

He added that a detailed working paper on the issue of foreign workers’ accommodation had already been made by the ministry and presented to a committee chaired by deputy prime minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi.

“It has been agreed to and approved by the committee. Although, it has been approved, it can only be enforced after being approved by Parliament. We hope that the act, which we are working on, will be tabled in January 2018,” he shared.

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