Business associations: 300k jobs up for grabs after departure of migrants
As the country moves to reopen sectors previously closed under Covid-19 restrictions, 48 industry associations representing businesses looking to hire workers have highlighted 300,000 vacancies that must be urgently filled.
The industry representatives said vacancies remained despite attempts to hire local workers.
They say the vacancies were created by migrants who left the country before the Covid-19 pandemic and now are unable to return due to border closures.
As an interim solution, the groups called on the government to...
As the country moves to reopen sectors previously closed under Covid-19 restrictions, 48 industry associations representing businesses looking to hire workers have highlighted 300,000 vacancies that must be urgently filled.
The industry representatives said vacancies remained despite attempts to hire local workers.
They say the vacancies were created by migrants who left the country before the Covid-19 pandemic and now are unable to return due to border closures.
As an interim solution, the groups called on the government to lift the current ban on entry for foreign workers.
"We are struggling from day one... we don't have enough workers," said Malaysian Muslim Restaurant Owners Association (Presma) president Jawahar Ali.
Locals not interested
Jawahar said of 12,500 Presma members, some 2,000 had gone out of business since last year due to factors including a shortage of manpower.
Presma deputy president Mohd Mosin Abdul Razak similarly attributed the shortage to a lack of interest from local workers.
"We are asking foreign workers not because we don't want to employ locals. But there were no takers.
"Even the ministry knows about this and that is the main reason we are asking for workers," Mosin said.
"Once our restaurants close that means the interlink to our suppliers will also close. We are dying now," he said.
The industry representatives also said the prolonged shortage has affected their ability to survive after suffering Covid-19 related losses.
Among available vacancies include some 75,000 harvesting jobs in the plantation sector, 30,000 in Muslim restaurants, and up to 5,000 in Petaling Jaya, Selangor at traditional coffee shops, according to the association leaders.
The groups, which set up the Foreign Workers Taskforce, said in a statement there are vacancies in agriculture, manufacturing, cleaning services, and other sub-sectors, some of which are no longer allowed to hire foreign workers.
Maheswary Ramasamy, representing the Indian Textiles and General Stores Association (Mita), said their sector was among those no longer permitted to hire foreign workers, even before the start of the pandemic.
She said many Mita members were suffering from a severe shortage of manpower after their workers who went back to India were unable to return.
“The recalibration programme is open for five sectors.
"At least open up the recalibration programme so that undocumented workers can be legalised and be employed by companies that need them," she said.
Border closure due to Covid-19 has seen the government freezing new recruitment of foreign workers, while many here were forced to leave due to closure of businesses during the initial stages of restricted movement orders.
Human Resources Minister M Saravanan previously said the current freeze will remain in place until December this year.
He also said any official decision on new intakes of foreign workers would be announced after discussions between his ministry, the National Security Council, the Home Affairs Ministry, Health Ministry, and other related ministries.
