Aussie firm asks supplier Top Glove to explain worker rights abuse claim

Top Glove employs over 10,000 migrant workers, from countries like Nepal, Bangladesh, Myanmar and India. (Bernama pic)

KUALA LUMPUR: Ansell, an Australian company which manufactures protective industrial and medical gloves and condoms, said it is investigating allegations that Top Glove, one of its major Malaysian suppliers, is abusing worker rights.

Its chairman Glenn Barnes was quoted by ABC News as saying Ansell would dump any supplier found to be exploiting workers.

The report said an ABC News investigation last month revealed several issues — including excessive overtime and exorbitant recruitment fees — affecting foreign workers at factories operated by Top Glove.

Top Glove is a major supplier of medical and rubber gloves to 195 countries including Britain and the United States. It employs over 10,000 migrant workers, from countries like Nepal, Bangladesh, Myanmar and India.

Reuters had earlier reported that Top Glove had vowed to clean up its labour supply chain and workplace practices after cases were uncovered of migrants toiling for long hours to pay off huge debts.

After the claims surfaced, Human Resources Minister M Kulasegaran said the ministry’s observations showed that Top Glove’s workers were working longer hours on their own accord in order to gain more income.

Meanwhile, Barnes told ABC: “We were surprised to hear what’s come out of this Top Glove inquiry and we are in the process of talking to Top Glove to work out whether what was reported was correct or not. And if it is correct, how quickly they can rectify the situation, or we will need to find other suppliers.”

Barnes said Ansell would also improve conditions in its own factories in Malaysia.

The report said ABC News had learned that workers in Ansell’s own factories in Malaysia were working in excess of 150 hours overtime per month — when taking into account rest days and public holidays.

Under Malaysian laws, workers should be given a rest day each week and work not more than 104 hours of overtime a month.

A payslip of a foreign worker at the Kulim, Kedah, factory in Malaysia operated by Ansell — seen by ABC News — showed 160 hours of overtime were worked in one month, which, the report said, was out of sync with Ansell’s own guidelines on overtime.

The company told ABC News that employees were not compelled to work on rest days and public holidays, and when they did it was with their consent and they were paid at double hourly rates as stipulated by law.

Barnes was quoted as saying: “One of the problems is that the people in those markets are working long hours and how do you employ and get a fair reward for them without them working long hours?

The company wanted to see people get proper rest, but it was “a continual battle” when people themselves chose to work overtime.

“One of the things we have to be careful of is we are applying first-world minds to second- and third-world problems.

“We want to be correct and proper in what we do. But we’ve got to be careful we don’t get over moralistic and put people in situations where they are unable to feed their families.” -FMT