KUALA LUMPUR: Parti Sosialis Malaysia (PSM) has called for the government to address problems related to labour migration in a more holistic approach to bear results.
PSM Migrant Desk coordinator Rani Rasiah said this is because the usual approach used to tackle the issue had done nothing to prevent the problems from recurring.
She said that many of the problems of labour migration stem from the absence of a comprehensive policy.
"The usual official approach – dealing with problems as they arise, ad hoc, in a piecemeal manner – only spawns new tricks and strengthens the labour migration underworld.
"This idea of the need to regulate labour migration is neither new nor radical. The 11th Malaysia Plan (2016-2020) insightfully addressed the issue and offered practical ideas on how to properly manage labour migration.
"An earlier government saw the urgency of this issue and appointed the Independent Committee on the Management of Foreign Workers which made recommendations.
"But there has been no action to set things right," she said in a statement.
Rani shared that two days ago, PSM had also assisted migrant workers in filing a complaint at the labour department for not being given a job after arriving in Malaysia.
"They arrived five months ago. Altogether, there were about 130 workers, but only a few dared to come forward to complain.
"These workers who are documented and hold employment contracts, had paid about RM25,000 each for employment here."
PSM also supported the Plantations and Commodities Minister, Datuk Seri Johari Abdul Ghani's call to act sternly against employers and agents involved in the issue.
Previously, Johari proposed that companies be fined up to RM30,000 for each foreign worker brought in who is not employed after a month.
He said strict punishment would force companies to reconsider bringing in workers if they could not guarantee employment.