Wee: Make it easy to hire foreigners

PETALING JAYA: Business operators should be provided with easy access to the hiring of foreign workers before they are punished for hiring illegals, Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Datuk Seri Dr Wee Ka Siong said.

In light of the Immigration Department’s announcement on Tuesday that it would freeze assets and bank accounts of companies in the industrial sector found to have hired illegal foreign workers, Dr Wee said many companies would not have hired them if they had a choice.

“We cannot assume all but many businesses, especially those doing manufacturing, urgently need workers. It is either they hire these workers or their businesses will go bust,” he told The Star in a phone interview.

Caught in such a dilemma, many businesses chose to hire illegal workers to keep afloat.

“If we want to impose strict punishment, access to new workers or rehiring of illegal workers should be made easy. Only then should we talk about punishment,” he added.

Dr Wee said there was a need to strike a balance when tackling the issue of illegal foreign workers.

“We need to control the number of foreign workers. We urgently need a proper monitoring system.

“But we must also acknowledge that many sectors still need workers to continue their operations,” he said.

MCA Youth chief Chong Sin Woon said if the employers were first-time offenders, it would be drastic to freeze their assets.

“But if a company has records and summonses for hiring illegal foreign workers or have been charged, then I think drastic action can be taken against them,” he said after opening a public speaking and writing test event at SJKC Pandamaran A in Klang yesterday.

Chong said there were always pros and cons in any policy and initiating such a drastic action against employers would have an impact on the nation’s economy and business environment.

“But employers need to cooperate with the Government to reduce their dependence on foreign workers,” he added.

He said employers were given the chance to transform their businesses to facilitate the hiring of locals, as well as opportunities to legalise their undocumented foreign workers, many times.

He hoped that the Government would be more friendly in implementing the policy to avoid any drastic impact on the business operations of companies.

Secretariat for the Advancement of Malaysian Entrepreneurs CEO Neil Foo said the punishment would “threaten the survival” of small and medium enterprises (SMEs).

He also urged the Government to consider the move’s economic repercussions, considering that the 650,000 SMEs made up over 97% of Malaysia’s registered businesses.

“SMEs contribute to almost 30% of the country’s gross domestic product and 59% of its employment. If they close down, the whole economy will be affected,” he said.

Federation of Chinese Associa­tions (Hua Zong) Economic Studies Committee chairman Kerk Loong Sing also felt the move was “too extreme”.

“That is a need for more discussions between the Government and industry players so that we can solve the problem in a positive manner, not use scare tactics against businesses,” he said.

Hua Zong deputy secretary-general Datuk Dr Chin Yew Sin pointed out that the “drastic move” was just a piecemeal solution to the illegal foreign worker problem.

“We should first be asking how these illegal workers entered the country and not put all the blame on businesses,” he said.