Let all licensed agencies recruit workers, urge 4 foreign associations

 Recruitment associations from Nepal, Bangladesh, Myanmar and Pakistan also call for an impartial review of arrangements that could restrict access to the FWCMS.

Malaysia implemented an FWCMS-based recruitment framework on Aug 22, under which employers can recruit foreign workers only through agencies registered on the platform. (Bernama pic)

PETALING JAYA:

Four foreign recruitment associations have urged Putrajaya to allow all licensed recruitment agencies to recruit foreign workers for Malaysia.

In a joint statement, recruitment associations from Nepal, Bangladesh, Myanmar and Pakistan said access to Malaysia’s Foreign Worker Centralised Management System (FWCMS) should be fair, transparent and non-discriminatory, with proper regulatory oversight.

“Any arrangement that provides exclusive or preferential access to a limited number of private entities or recruitment agencies, while restricting or excluding other licensed agencies, raises serious concerns about fair competition, transparency, equal opportunities and the rights and interests of migrant workers,” they said.

Malaysian employers were previously free to recruit Nepali workers through any agency licensed by Nepal but can now recruit only through 25 agencies listed on FWCMS.

Malaysia implemented the FWCMS-based recruitment framework on Aug 22, under which employers can recruit foreign workers only through agencies registered on the platform.

Former Klang MP Charles Santiago questioned the move, calling on the human resources ministry to disclose the criteria used to select the 25 Nepali agencies and the eligibility requirements they had to meet.

The associations called on Putrajaya and the governments of the four source countries to clarify the legal and institutional basis for any arrangement governing access to FWCMS and related recruitment processes.

They said the eligibility criteria, selection mechanism, legal authority, contractual arrangements, scope of the agencies’ authority and relationship between the system operator and selected recruitment agencies should be disclosed, with the arrangements subject to appropriate regulatory oversight.

They also called for an impartial review and investigation into any arrangement that may prevent legitimate agencies from accessing recruitment opportunities on an equal and transparent basis. - FMT