Malaysian industries should prepare for a future when economic migrants will no longer find the country an attractive destination to work in, according to Kluang MP Wong Shu Qi.
Citing the situation in Malaysia's palm oil sector, Wong in a statement said the government should encourage innovations and attract more local workers to fill the related positions.
"We can't assume migrant workers will always be willing to come and work in our country.
"They are economic migrants, and they will head towards where there are more lucrative offers," she said.
"Today, Malaysia may be an attractive destination for them, but tomorrow there might be another country with a better offer.
"If we don't make our plans now, our plantation sector is at a serious risk of being crippled in the future," stressed Wong.
Among others, she said investments should be made to invest in technologies related to labour-intensive jobs, including harvesting palm oil bunches and fertilising the crops.
Malaysian Palm Oil Association (MPOA) chief executive officer Nageeb Wahab had previously said while many parts of the production process have been automated, the first stage of bringing down the fruit bunch remains a manual process, carried out by some 84 percent of migrant workers employed in local plantations.
Wong also said Malaysia's over-reliance on migrant workers in the plantation sector is an open secret, along with the government's failed attempts to attract local workers.
"The government talks about how this sector can offer a lucrative income but local workers still refuse to take it up. This is completely unacceptable," she said.
"If indeed our locals are lazy and avoid doing dirty, difficult and dangerous jobs, then why are thousands of Malaysians willing to work in Australian apple farms to pick fruits?
"Further, past media reports indicated that Malaysians make up the highest number of undocumented migrants in Australia," Wong said.
Short-cut measure
She also dismissed the government's approval for the entry of 32,000 migrant workers to work in the plantations as a shortcut measure that does not address the overall labour shortage issue.
Plantation Industries and Commodities Minister Zuraida Kamaruddin had previously said a plantation worker could earn a "lucrative income" of RM1,200 in basic salary or more than RM2,000 with incentives and overtime, but yet it wasn't attractive to locals.
The approval for entry of 32,000 workers was announced amid an acute demand for migrant workers across various economic sectors struggling to rebuild operations after most of the Covid-19 restrictions were lifted. - Mkini
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