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Plantations and commodities minister Datuk Seri Johari Abdul Ghani said stricter regulations have been imposed to prevent allegations of forced labour and human trafficking.
Foreign workers who have been hired to work in Malaysia's agriculture industry will not be allowed to work in other sectors, Minister of Plantations and Commodities Datuk Seri Johari Ghani. said on Tuesday (23 January 2024).
As cited in a report by NST, Minister Johari shared that these stricter regulations have been implemented after a discussion with the Ministries of Home Affairs and Human Resources, to prevent the country "from being accused of practising forced labour, fraud, and human trafficking".
Minister Ghani also stressed that those bringing in foreign workers into Malaysia must ensure accommodation is provided for them, and that it is of suitable and adequate condition.
"We do not want foreign workers to be perceived as residing in conditions that could lead to accusations of forced labour," he was cited as saying.
The Minister also emphasised that if a company brings foreign workers into the country and there is no work for them, the person who brought them in will have to pay the wages.
As further shared, Malaysia is said to need about 40,000 foreign workers for the agricultural industry as of December 2023. That said, as reported by NST, hiring in other sectors apart from agriculture has been put on hold, and thus, any company involved in hiring foreign workers would be required to submit an application to the Ministry of Human Resources, whose jurisdiction is also accompanied by the Ministry of Plantation and Commodities.
He was quoted as saying: "Before approval, our ministry will verify the application because we have certain benchmarks and calculations based on the farm's size, the location of the farm, the existing workforce, and how many more workers they need," he noted.
"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 added.
READ MORE: Malaysia reduces window for foreign worker recruitment applications
Lead image / Minister Datuk Seri Johari Ghani Facebook
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