Agencies Only Manage 10 Per Cent Of Foreign Worker Intake

JOHOR BAHARU, Aug 13 (Bernama) -- Only 10 per cent of the intake of foreign workers in the country is managed by foreign worker agencies while the rest is done through direct applications to the Home Ministry, according to the Association of Foreign Workers' Suppliers and Management Firms (Tekam).

Its president, Datuk Baharum Ghani, said the perception that the agencies were responsible for flooding the country with foreign workers was incorrect.

"The agencies are always blamed. But what really happened is that of the 2.5 million foreign workers in Malaysia, only 10 per cent were brought in by the agencies, while the rest through direct approval from the ministry," he told Bernama here Thursday.

Yesterday, Home Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Tun Hussein was reported as saying that the ministry would revoke the licences and permits given to foreign workers agencies found to have breached regulations.

The minister also said the government would not be issuing new licences so as to curb the influx of foreign workers.

Baharum said that at the moment, industrial sectors like manufacturing, plantation and construction could submit their applications to hire foreign workers directly to the ministry, without going through the agencies.

He claimed that these direct applications were actually contributing to the influx of foreign workers in the country.

"Foreign worker agencies cannot bring foreign workers into the country without the approval from the ministry," he said.

Meanwhile, Baharum also commended the ministry's decision to continue the freeze on the intake of foreign workers from Bangladesh as well as putting the Human Resources Ministry, the Plantation Industries and Commodities Ministry and the International Trade and Industry Ministry to be in charge of ascertaining their respective manpower needs. -- BERNAMA