Wednesday, March 18, 2015

MALAYSIA:::Over two million legal foreign workers in Malaysia, Dewan Rakyat told

The country recorded 2.07 million workers holding temporary employment visit pass as at December 31 last year, the Dewan Rakyat was told today.  
Deputy Human Resource Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Abdul Muttalib said the entry of foreign workers was driven by the country’s dependence on foreign workers in critical sectors.
“The lack of interest and high turnover of local workers in sectors which do not good prospects for them has forced employers in the country to depend on foreign workers,” he said.  

NEPAL:::M’sia decreases penalty for illegal migrant workers

KATHMANDU, MAR 18 - Nepali migrants working without legal status in Malaysia can now return home paying RM 1,250 in fine as the Malaysian government decreased the penalty amount for the second time in a year.

COMBODIA:::Government Approves Pact to Send Maids to Malaysia

Cambodia has signed off on a draft agreement that would lift a moratorium on sending maids to Malaysia, imposed four years ago amid widespread reports of abuse, and is waiting for the Malaysian government’s approval, a Labor Ministry official said Tuesday.
The long-awaited memorandum of understanding (MoU) includes better safeguards to protect Cambodian maids against abuse, debt bondage and sexual violence, mounting evidence of which led Prime Minister Hun Sen to close the employment route in 2011.
However, critics say that due to close connections between the Cambodian government and recruitment agencies blamed for many of the abuses, it remains to be seen if the new agreement will be effective in protecting women sent to Malaysia.