Why is gov’t beholden to employers in foreign worker issue?

By P Ramasamy

The Malaysian government lacks a well-defined and consistent policy on the hiring of foreign workers and as it stands, it is the employers who have been given a free hand at determining how many of these workers are allowed into the country.

Given this situation, the overall effect of hiring foreign workers and their impact on the country has not been thoroughly examined.

We now hear that the government has lifted the recent freeze on foreign workers on the grounds that there is a labour shortage as expressed by employers in the sectors of manufacturing, construction, plantation and furniture industries.

The government has the intention to lift the freeze in other sectors as well if a labour shortage can be proven there too.

While the government seems to be inclined to granting the wishes of employers, it does not seem to care about the reservations expressed by trade unions in the country.

For years, workers’ organisations like the Malaysian Trades Union Congress (MTUC) have argued that the large intake of foreign workers has had a detrimental effect on wages for local workers.

For the MTUC, the supposed labour shortage in various sectors have been artificially created by interested employers in order to bring down wages so that they can reap handsome profits.

The real losers are Malaysian workers. Low wages and unfair labour conditions make it difficult for them to work in places that have become the mainstay of foreign workers.

It is not that local workers have not contributed to productivity and the general rise in the prosperity of the nation, but the steady flow of cheap and docile foreign workers has made it difficult for them to compete on equal terms.

Malaysia’s dependence on cheap and unskilled foreign labour has meant that the skill level of the workforce has not risen. Today only about 30% of the workforce is considered skilled.

Thus, dependence on cheap foreign labour means that skills and competence required for the country to move up the ladder of development remains an elusive dream.

The government’s foreign labor policy remains not only inconsistent, but is determined to a large extent by the immediate interests of employers.

The long-term impact of foreign labour is seldom examined i.e. to what extent their presence will contribute to economic development and the rise of wages.

Even if employers argue their case for labour shortage, it is the duty of the government to weigh such demands and to make wise decisions.

The government at the end of the day should not allow themselves to be beholden to private interests that have nothing to do with the welfare and well-being of the nation as a whole.

P Ramasamy is Deputy Chief Minister II of Penang.

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