THE arrival of 500,000 migrant workers from Bangladesh this month will lead to uncontrollable levels of forced labour, the Malaysian Trades Union Congress said today.

Its secretary-general, Kamarul Baharin Mansor said the influx will also dampen the economy which could cause locals to lose their jobs and bankrupt businesses.  

The International Labour Organisation (ILO) defines forced labour as work that is performed involuntarily and under the menace of penalty. It refers to situations in which persons are coerced to work through the use of violence or intimidation, or by more subtle means such as manipulated debt, retention of identity papers or threats of denunciation to immigration authorities.

“MTUC is nervous and worried over the arrival of 500,000 Bangladeshi workers expected this month,” he said in a statement today.

Last week, Harian Metro and Berita Harian reported that the Human Resources Ministry was expecting the arrival of half a million Bangladeshi workers in Malaysia this month.

“The government’s reason is a demand from employers in need of foreign workers to continue operations,” Kamarul said.

He also questioned whether the government has boosted the manpower of the Labour Department (JTK) in anticipation of the need for more inspections of premises employing foreign workers.

“Is the number of JTK officers sufficient at present? MTUC has been informed that among the reasons forced labour occurs is a lack of periodic inspections because JTK lacks officers,” he said.

Kamarul said the country has struggled with issues of worker exploitation which had caused its palm oil as well as glove products to be banned in the United States

The US barring of these exports showed forced labour was indeed an issue in Malaysia, he said.

He said during the Covid-19 pandemic, the government should have taken the opportunity to study how locals could fill jobs mostly dominated by foreigners.

“MTUC is also concerned after hearing that foreign workers are being hired to work as receptionists and drivers. These jobs should be filled by locals,” he said.

In 2021, the official number of foreign workers stood at 1.1 million and made up about 7% of the total workforce. – April 12, 2022.