KUALA LUMPUR: Following today's announcement on the temporary freeze of Indonesian workers, it is critical for the government to iron out any outstanding matters to ensure that the smooth supply of foreign workers will not be disrupted.
Malaysian Employers Federation (MEF) president Datuk Dr Syed Hussain Syed Husman said the suspension of new foreign workers by Indonesia will prolong the chronic labour shortages faced by all economic sectors in Malaysia.
"Efforts by businesses to bring their operations back to pre-pandemic levels will be hampered by the suspension of supply of new foreign workers from Indonesia.
"Indonesia is an important source country for the supply of foreign workers, contributing 35 per cent of foreign workers and 70 per cent of all domestic workers in Malaysia.
"Employers have endured shortages of foreign workers for a long time and the shortages had caused operational disruptions to businesses. Some businesses in the manufacturing sector had to turn down new orders for fear of not being able to meet deadlines. Construction companies had to bear penalties for late deliveries.
"Restaurants were bombarded with complaints from customers for slow services and hotels were also being criticised for not being able to check in guests on time due to rooms not being ready. Plantation companies also suffered huge losses due to a shortage of harvesters," he said in a statement today.
To address the possible dwindling foreign workforce due to the temporary freeze, MEF also proposed for special approval to be given to use the available labour force in the country.
Syed Hussain said the workforce could be sourced among refugees and paroled prisoners.
"Those with the special approval from the government may be deployed immediately to fill up the acute shortage until the new foreign workers arrive.
"It was reported that there are about 168,000 refugees holding the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees card and more than 60 per cent of them are potentially employable."
Syed Hussain said the Joint Committee on the Management of Foreign Workers should review the conditions under the Labour Recalibration Programme to allow more undocumented migrants to participate in the programme.
"Currently employers are faced with extreme difficulties to get the required manpower to run their businesses.
"While MEF supports efforts to reduce dependence on foreign workers in certain sectors, the government should address this complex matter on a sectoral basis as many other sectors, such as manufacturing and restaurants, also depend on foreign labour, apart from the plantation and construction sectors."
Syed Hussain also proposed that the government recruit more foreign workers from other source countries, such as Nepal, Pakistan, Cambodia, Laos and the Philippines.
Earlier today, Indonesia announced yet another temporary freeze effective immediately on its workers entering Malaysia.
The decision was due to a breach of a memorandum of understanding (MoU) signed between Malaysia and Indonesia three months ago.
Indonesian ambassador to Malaysia Hermono, who confirmed the matter to the New Straits Times today, said Human Resources Minister Datuk Seri M. Saravanan had been updated on the freeze and the republic's reasons for it in an official letter sent yesterday.
Last December, Indonesia enforced a freeze on sending their workers pending the inking of the MoU, which put an end to the prolonged negotiation. The freeze was lifted on April 1 when the MoU, citing the terms of employment and protection of domestic workers, was signed by both countries on the same day.