Senator urges worker permits review in 'traditional Indian' sectors

Senator C Sivarraajh has urged the government to not terminate the services of foreign workers who use the temporary employment visit pass to work at textile stores, barber shops, and goldsmiths.

According to the MIC leader, this is because the service of the 15,000 foreign workers who are currently employed in the three sectors is crucial to ensure the continuity of traditional Indian entrepreneurs and traders.

“My meetings with players in this sector have found that government measures could have a negative impact on their business survival.

“These three sub-sectors are among the hardest hit by Covid-19 and most of the companies in these sub-sectors are small and medium-sized enterprises. The government’s failure to understand their needs will result in them shuttering down,” said Sivarrajh in his maiden speech in Dewan Negara.

The Immigration Department had on Feb 28 issued a circular stating that employers in the three sub-sectors will no longer be allowed to renew the temporary permits for their employees starting March 15, 2023.

Sivarraajh noted that if Putrajaya could approve nearly a million employment quotas for foreign workers in other states, then it could consider the needs of the three sub-sectors that require only 15,000 approvals.

Thus, he requested the Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs Ministry, which oversees the three subsectors, to understand the reality of the industry and work with the Home Ministry and Human Resources Ministry to plan immediate actions to assist the said sectors.

'Re-establish Indian Affairs Committee'

Meanwhile, Sivarraajh also requested the government to look into issues concerning educational opportunities, especially at local universities, for Indian students.

Many students are forced to discontinue their studies after not securing places in local universities or not getting the course of their choice, he noted.

“I call on the prime minister to consider re-establishing the Cabinet Committee on Indian Community Affairs as was done during the time of the sixth PM (Najib Abdul Razak), where the prime minister himself can resolve many issues concerning the Indian community.”

During his tenure, Najib himself chaired the committee, which among others, sought to address the various issues plaguing the Indian community including statelessness, education, and other socioeconomic matters.

In addition, Sivarraajh also mooted the establishment of a special fund for the Indian community that could help finance small and medium-sized enterprises with amounts larger than the RM100,000 currently offered by Tekun Nasional.

“The empowerment of small and medium-sized enterprises in the Indian community involved in the digital economy can also be done through strategic cooperation between the Entrepreneur Development and Cooperatives Ministry, and the Science, Technology, and Innovation Ministry in Malaysia.” - Mkini