In a recent update, the government shared that they are considering obtaining foreign workers from Africa.
This is mainly because there’s a need for more manpower in the plantation sector.
Our Minister of Human Resources, M. Kulasegaran said this is mainly because foreign workers from Vietnam and Indonesia no longer want to work here.
They’ve said that Malaysia’s salary is so low that it’s now comparable to their home countries and they’ve mentioned that they rather work in their country of origin since the wage received is not too different.
As reported by The Star, M. Kulasegaran said,
“I have been discussing with the ambassadors of African nations recently, and they will get the views of their respective governments on the matter.
“This is a start, and we look at the suitability (of foreign workers from African countries) because the ministry has received requests from employers wanting workers from the countries concerned to work in the plantation sector.”
Adding to that, he said that all previous agreements with Bangladesh have expired. However, Malaysia intends to sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on the entry of workers from the country.
Upon reading this news, Malaysians shared their dissatisfaction, saying that the government needs to focus their efforts to help local talents instead of importing them from other countries.
“You should help you own people first. There are a lot of Malaysians who are unemployed, what about them? Besides that, the government should also focus their efforts to increase our base salaries. Cost of living is getting higher and higher every year, but our fresh graduate’s salary has been at RM2,500 since 10 years ago!” one netizen lamented.
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Also read: Dr M: Malaysia Has Too Many Foreign Workers
