CNI News
13 Dec 2022
Malaysia has planned to hire nearly 400,000 foreign workers but has not announced the countries from which it recruits them, Myanmar nationals who intend to work in Malaysia are required to be cautious about swindlers, labour activists for Myanmar workers in Malaysia told the CNI.
The new Malaysian prime minister announced that the immigration department approved more than 370,000 out of over 400,000 applications to hire foreign workers.
Migrant workers in Malaysia.
U Barbu Gyi, who has been helping Myanmar workers in Malaysia, told the CNI, "Some agents have posted "Malaysia has resume hiring foreign workers" based on the announcement of the new prime minister. They are trying to lure Myanmar workers. However, they cannot express the details. So, it is important for Myanmar nationals who intend to work in Malaysia not to trust their money in such agents. The new prime minister has not announced the details. He may be talking about 400,000 workers to be hired under G-to-G agreements made by the previous government. In the past, the government agreed to hire 500,000 workers from Bangladesh under a G-to-G agreement. The Malaysian government has such agreements with Bangladesh and Indonesia. We still don't know whehter he was talking about the agreements or new plans. I think he was talking about such agreements. He did not say that the country would hire workers from Myanmar."
Remaining more than 30,000 applications out of over 400,000 applications submitted between 1st January to 4th December would also be processed, according to the statement.
Migrant workers in Malaysia.
The Malaysian government is likely to adopt a policy as to how many workers from which countries will be hired, labour activists for Myanmar workers in Malaysia said.
He wants the Malaysian government to hire some workers from Myanmar, General Secretary U Chit Kaung of the Assistance Association for Myanmar Migrant Workers in Malaysia told the CNI.
He told the CNI, "The Malaysian government needs to announce their policy precisely. Only then, will we be able to know exactly. We want the Malaysian government to hire workers from Myanmar.
However, we don't know the relations between the Malaysian and Myanmar governments. This will also matter. We want the Malaysian government to hire Myanmar workers but we don't know the details of their policies because it is a new government."
Malaysian authorities.
During the term of the previous government, the Malaysian government did not hire workers from Myanmar under G-to-G agreements and permitted Myanmar migrants who had been approved after the outbreak of COVID-19 to work in Malaysia.
Malaysian factories are required to seek approval to the Malaysian labour labour ministry and such factories hire only a few workers.
U Barbu Gyi told the CNI, "If your agents are trustworthy, you must ask for the copies of demand letters issued by the Malaysian government and sent them to us. We can ask the factories whether they are true or not. There are a lot of swindlers at present. Myanmar nationals who intend to work in Malaysia are required to do due diligence."
There are 1.4 million foreign workers who have been permitted to work in Malaysia temporarily and 500,000 of them are employed in the manufacturing sectors while 300,000, 100,000 and another 100,000 are working in the construction, services and agriculture sectors respectively, according to the home minister of the Malaysian government.
