Foreign worker recruitment now fully under Home Ministry

All steps for the recruitment of foreign workers, including the One-Stop Centre (OSC), have come under the purview of the Home Ministry since the beginning of this month.

It is the culmination of a move announced by the government on Dec 21, 2022, that the One-Channel System (OCS) to recruit domestic workers (domestic helpers/maids) will come under the Human Resources Ministry, while the One-Stop Centre (OSC) for the recruitment of foreign workers is under the Home Ministry.

A report by the New Straits Times quoted a source as saying that it marked a significant shift as the OSC, which handles critical processes such as quota applications and reductions, extension of conditional approval letters, employer changes, interview process for foreign worker quota applications, levy payment extensions and sector transfers, was no longer under the Human Resources Ministry.

The move was carried out to streamline the process and make it easier for employers to recruit foreign workers as the Foreign Workers Centralised Management System is under the Home Ministry, which controls immigration affairs such as the issuance of work permits.

In a Facebook post last Friday, the Human Resources Ministry announced that it had abolished its Foreign Workers Management Division (BPPA) and transferred its functions to the Home Ministry.

The BPPA manages the one-stop centre which reviews and approves foreign worker quotas and recruitment through the Foreign Workers Centralised Management System.

The Home Ministry previously carried out the functions until 2022.

The Human Resources Ministry is the umbrella organisation overseeing the planning, management and development of Malaysia’s manpower resources, and the appropriate ministry to manage foreign workers’ recruitment and management as well. 

It is now only responsible for reviewing the eligibility of employers to hire foreign workers under Section 60K of the Employment Act 1955 and protecting the welfare of foreign workers during their time here.

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