PETALING JAYA: The Malaysian Employers Federation (MEF) has urged the government to address Indonesia’s temporary freeze imposed on all its workers entering Malaysia, saying this will prolong the chronic labour shortages faced by all sectors of the economy.
MEF president Syed Hussain Syed Husman said the efforts by businesses to return their operations to pre-pandemic levels would be hampered.
“The government must iron out any outstanding matters to ensure that the supply of foreign workers will not be disrupted,” he said in a statement, stressing that about 35% of foreign workers and 70% of maids come from Indonesia.
This comes after Indonesian ambassador Hermono said Indonesia had imposed a temporary freeze on all Indonesian workers entering Malaysia since yesterday due to the immigration department’s continued use of the Maid Online System (MOS) to facilitate the recruitment of Indonesian maids.
He also criticised Malaysia’s refusal to adhere to the memorandum of understanding (MoU) on Indonesian maids, describing it as a “disgrace”. The MoU was signed three months ago.
Syed Hussain added that businesses in the manufacturing, construction, hospitality and plantation sectors have suffered huge losses because of the labour shortage.
“MEF proposes that special approval be given to utilise labour available in the country such as refugees and paroled prisoners. They should be deployed immediately as a short-term measure,” he said.
He also said the conditions under the recalibration programme should be reviewed to regularise and enable illegal immigrants to participate in the programme.
In the meantime, Syed Hussain suggested that the government recruit more foreign workers from other countries such as Nepal, Pakistan, Cambodia, Laos and the Philippines. - FMT
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