Stern action against employers who terminate locals to hire foreigners, says HR Minister

PUTRAJAYA: Strict action will be taken against employers who are found to have terminated their workers in favour of foreign labour, says V. Sivakumar.

The Human Resources Minister said that to date, the ministry had yet to receive any complaints from employees regarding the issue pertaining to unfair termination.

“If there’s any truth (to the allegations), the government will take serious actions against the employers.

“The government allowed foreign workers into the country not with the intention to replace our local talents, instead to support sectors that were really in need of labour,” he told reporters at Menara Perkeso here on Friday (Feb 3).

Last week, The Star reported that workers of factories in the northern states had claimed their job contracts would not be continued as foreign workers would be brought in to replace them.

A source told The Star that there were employers who would offer longer contract periods to foreign workers – up to five years – while locals were only offered six months.

The claims came following the government’s move to relax the approval for acquiring foreign workers under the Foreign Workers Employment Relaxation Plan, which aims to address the shortage of manpower.