SHAH ALAM: Malaysian youths should take up jobs deemed dirty, difficult and dangerous (3D) if they do not want more foreign workers to be brought into the country, said Deputy Prime Minister Datuk Seri Dr Ahmad Zahid Hamidi.
It was the reality that not many Malaysians were willing to have such jobs, he said.
“Many people have been criticising the Government following the decision to bring in 1.5 million Bangladeshi workers in stages over the next three years.”
“They also asked for the existing two million foreign workers to be sent back. But how many are willing to work in fields that Malaysians are clearly not interested in?
“I challenge the youths to take up jobs such as cleaning the drains, clearing rubbish and work in farms if they do not want foreign workers,” he said in his speech before the launch of the Selangor Youth Council 32nd annual assembly, Youth Love Selangor Assembly and the Selangor4Youth programme yesterday.
Dr Ahmad Zahid cited how the furniture manufacturing industry needed more than 160,000 workers and yet the jobs it offered were often shunned by locals.
“Employers have often complained that when they hire Malaysians and provide them with good pay and benefits, they still quit after several months because they could not stand the work.
“We need to face the reality that the economy has to develop and it needs manpower,” he said.
