MEGA projects such as the East Coast Railway Link (ECRL) will spur Malaysia’s job market post-Covid-19, Human Resource Minister M. Saravanan told Dewan Rakyat today.

He said since Putrajaya is reducing its dependency on foreign workers, job opportunities for Malaysians will increase, especially with this project.

“The ministry has moved to reduce foreign workers in various sectors until the end of the year.

“ECRL and other projects will open job opportunities for Malaysians.”

He was responding to question from opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim (Port Dickson-Pakatan Harapan) on the increasing rate of unemployment in Malaysia.

Saravanan said Putrajaya has put in safety nets via the Penjana economic stimulus programme to safeguard Malaysians.

“We have given RM120,000 to those who were dismissed from work without notice. With this, the government has helped to reduce the burden of the people.”

Malaysia’s unemployment rate has worsened, from 5% in April to 5.3% in May according to the Statistics Department.

The department said industries that have been severely affected are services, tourism, event planning, entertainment and sports. – July 20, 2020.