Race against time: Immigration officers at the evaluation counters during the Labour Recalibration Programme (RTK) 2.0 at the Selangor Immigration Department, Shah Alam. — Bernama
Immigration preparing to meet RTK 2.0 deadline
PETALING JAYA: The Immigration Department needs to be prepared to handle the mounting paperwork ahead of the March 31 deadline for the second Labour Recalibration Programme (RTK 2.0), say employers.
SME Association of Malaysia president Ding Hong Sing said the department’s staff have been overworked in the face of a manpower shortage.
“We hope they can finish the work. Digitalisation is crucial to cut all the unnecessary nitty-gritty (steps).
“We welcome the recalibration. Immigration must now work overtime to quickly issue approvals and ensure the necessary paperwork is completed by March 31,” he said when contacted.
Ding was responding to Home Minister Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail’s recent announcement that no more leniency will be given to employers who fail to register illegal foreign workers and complete the verification process after March 31 under RTK 2.0.
On Tuesday, Saifuddin Nasution revealed that Malaysia currently has two million legal foreign workers, adding that there is still a deficit of 400,000 that has yet to be filled in various economic sectors.
He also said a joint meeting between the Home and Human Resources ministries on Jan 16 will draw up a more effective formula in a new policy to be presented to the Cabinet for managing foreign workers, including those not hired by any employers.
Ding also called for unemployed legal migrants to be transferred to fill vacancies at small and medium enterprises.
“This is because the workers often pay a high price and take loans to come to work in Malaysia,” he said, adding that some paid between RM20,000 and RM25,000.
Kuala Lumpur and Selangor Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industry president Nivas Ragavan said the government must ensure the applications are processed swiftly.
“After this, they should have a government-to-government agreement, because some have not been renewed and regulated like the hiring agents’ fees,” he said.
Nivas said the government should open a recruitment system based on industry needs.
He said it should produce genuine documents for foreign workers, followed by enforcement to handle their management.
“This is because there are booming sectors like agriculture and plantation but also others that are going through a slower pace like construction, mining and manufacturing.
“We have to see the demand if it is based on industry requirements.
“By doing so, we can prevent what happened earlier with unscrupulous agents applying for a bulk quota and causing high recruitment rates, but with many workers ending up without jobs and as victims of human trafficking,” he said.
