Bring full force of law against forced labour, online job ad syndicates, govt told

 

A group of Malaysians held captive in Cambodia and forced to work as scammers returned home recently. (Bernama pic)

KUALA LUMPUR: The full force of the law must be brought against perpetrators of forced labour and fraudulent online advertisements targeting job-seeking youths, says DAP secretary-general Loke Siew Fook.

He said enforcement agencies such as the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC), police and other agencies must work with multinational tech companies like Google and social media company Facebook to get rid of such activities and bring the perpetrators to court.

“Work with the authorities in our neighbouring countries to stop these criminals and bring these Malaysian workers back home to safety,” he said in a statement released in conjunction with Labour Day.

In late March, the country was shocked by reports that more than 50 Malaysian youths were being held against their will in Cambodia and forced to scam people. They had been lured there with “lucrative marketing jobs”.

In early April, 16 Malaysians were rescued by Cambodian police on April 5 and flown home. They had been subjected to abuse by their captors and not paid the promised wages.

Police said they had received 35 reports of 45 Malaysians waiting to be rescued in neighbouring countries.

The Seremban MP also called on the government to come up with more creative and long-term policies to assist workers in replenishing their Employees Provident Fund (EPF) retirement savings after these were depleted following a series of withdrawals to ease their financial woes caused by the pandemic.

Loke said the government needed to put in more effort to extend the Employment Insurance System (EIS), which provides unemployment income temporarily for workers losing their jobs, to include ride-hailing drivers and other gig workers.

This is necessary as at least six million workers are yet to participate in EIS, which comes under the Social Security Organisation (Socso), he added.

Loke said DAP was ready to support the government in providing greater social protection for Malaysian workers.

He also expressed concern over the low level of unionisation among workers, with only 6% unionised at present.

He called on labour unions to be more flexible and creative in their approach to attract members and reach out to the younger workers. - FMT