KUALA LUMPUR: FGV Holdings Bhd
is actively engaging with the United States (US) Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to lift the withhold release order (WRO), following its submission of the petition to modify the WRO to the US CBP in June 2024.
The US CBP issued the WRO against the palm oil and palm oil products of FGV and its subsidiaries and joint ventures on Sept 30, 2020, barring entry of these products to the US.
Group chief executive officer Fakhrunniam Othman said FGV is waiting for the agency's response after submitting additional clarifications on labour compliance in mid-February 2025.
"We have submitted the petition to modify the WRO in June of last year. After that, the US CBP engaged with FGV to get additional information on specific issues relating to labour compliance according to the Malaysian laws,” he said.
In addition, group chief financial officer Datuk Mohd Hairul Abdul Hamid said that among the key clarifications sought by US CBP were the working hours and aspects related to the Malaysian immigration laws concerning foreign workers.
"There are certain clarifications that have been requested in terms of the overtime, because if you look at international labour standards, your overtime cannot exceed 60 hours per week whereas in Malaysia, it is up to 104 hours.
"So, they need confirmation on whether FGV has complied with the Malaysian law,” he said.
Thus, Mohd Hairul hopes for a positive outcome, following the submission of the petition to the US CBP to modify the WRO. - Bernama
