Associations rejoice at lifting of ban on foreign workers

PETALING JAYA: The Kuala Lumpur and Selangor Furniture Entrepreneur Association is delighted the Government has lifted the ban on recruiting foreign workers.

Its president Datuk Eric Lee said the good news was very welcome but hoped the decision would be communicated quickly to agencies that process the applications, so there would be no delays.

“Sometimes decisions made at the top take a long time to flow down to staff at the ground level,” he said.

The association had warned that Malaysia’s renowned furniture industry, worth nearly RM20bil annually, was in jeopardy because manufacturers were struggling to meet demand due to acute labour shortage.

Lee had pointed out that Malaysia, ranked eighth among the world’s top furniture exporters, risked lo­­sing market share to Vietnam and Indonesia.

Master Builders Association Malay­sia president Matthew Tee said the Government made the right decision.

He said the ban should not have been imposed in the first place, adding that he was “glad common sense prevailed.”

SME Association of Malaysia national president Michael Kang also welcomed the decision, saying it will help spur the industry.

He said the decision was well received by small and medium-scale enterprises and urged the Gov­ernment to issue clear guidelines specifying if there were certain ratios necessary for the employment of foreign workers.

“We don’t want cases where a company applies for 100 workers but gets only 50,” Kang said.

Malayan Agricultural Producers Association executive director Mohamad Audong lauded the move, calling it timely in view of cropping season in the oil palm industry.

He said the industry was facing a shortage of 7,000 workers in the peninsula alone.

“A shortage of 7,000 workers is equivalent to a shortage of 364,000 tonnes of harvest in a month.

“We’re really relieved and thankful to the Government,” he said, adding that Sabah and Sarawak also needed some 7,000 foreign workers for plantations and agriculture.