Santiago beri amaran masalah pengambilan pekerja asing berulang

Malaysia has halted the recruitment of Bangladeshi workers as of May 31, 2024, due to concerns over high recruitment fees, fraudulent recruitment agencies, and forced labor. Former Klang Parliamentary Representative Charles Santiago has warned that any further increase in the number of Bangladeshi workers could perpetuate existing problems in Malaysia's foreign worker recruitment system.

Deputy Minister of Local Government, Rural Development, and Cooperatives Mir Shahe Alam stated that Malaysia plans to recruit around 200,000 Bangladeshi workers in the next six months, a claim disputed by Labor Minister R Ramanan.

Santiago emphasized that any future recruitment must come with safeguards to prevent a recurrence of the problems. He believes the government should first address structural issues within the existing system, including excessive payments to workers and the involvement of multiple intermediaries. His main concern is the structure allowing 25 recruitment agencies to control access to the Malaysian labor market, resembling a previous system.

Concerns about the flow of workers between Malaysia and Bangladesh are not new. In 2024, a group of United Nations Human Rights Commission experts reported allegations of recruitment fraud involving a network in Bangladesh and Malaysia, with workers facing excessive payments, being trapped in debt, and some arriving in Malaysia without any jobs.

The International Labour Organization (ILO) noted reports of Bangladeshi workers with valid permits but finding no jobs they were promised emerged around 2023. In February 2024, up to 733 fake-invited Bangladeshi workers were awarded over RM1 million in compensation for being falsely employed.

Executive Director of the North-South Initiative Adrian Pereira acknowledged Malaysia's demand for foreign workers but stressed that their recruitment must be legal, transparent, and free from forced labor. He stated that civil society lacks sufficient information about how foreign workers are recruited and how quotas are allocated, without proper auditing or an independent ombudsman overseeing the system.

Pereira emphasized that high recruitment fees have led workers into debt traps, while Malaysia still lacks a comprehensive basis for foreign workers to ensure recruitment fees are not passed on to them. "Everyone must ensure workers are not paying to get a job," he said. "Workers should not have to pay to get a job, in line with ILO standards, supply chain principles, and the 2021 Malaysia-Bangladesh agreement."

He also urged that training be given before departure, upon arrival in Malaysia, and before starting work, so foreign workers understand their contracts and rights before being potentially exploited. Pereira warned that limiting recruitment to 25 agencies would not be in line with the ILO's fair recruitment principles and could lead to cartels, as seen in the past. He also stated that conditions between employers and recruitment agents need to be clear.