KLANG: Human Rights NGO Tenaganita has lambasted DAP’s Lim Guan Eng for his recent statement regarding wages and remuneration for foreign workers.
Lim had said in Parliament recently there wasn’t a need for the government to implement minimum wage as well as Employees Provident Fund (EPF) contributions for foreign workers as Malaysia was not bound by any international labour conventions to do so.
Tenaganita executive director Glorene Das said Lim’s statement was "tone deaf" and "reinforced the dehumanisation" of foreign workers and "legitimises exploitative employment practices" among others.
“Migrant workers form the backbone of Malaysia’s key industries, from construction, manufacturing, and plantations to food processing and cleaning services.
“They undertake some of the most dangerous, dirty, and difficult jobs, sometimes deadly, that Malaysians refuse to do, often under unsafe and exploitative conditions.
“To suggest they do not 'deserve' a minimum wage or social security is to validate and support slavery," Glorene said.
According to Glorene, Tenaganita’s research and case documentation indicated there was a prevalence of foreign workers being treated unfairly in regard to proper wages and overtime payments as well as exposure to risky working conditions.
She added that denying EPF contributions for migrant workers deprived them of long-term jobs as well as post-retirement security.
“The exclusion of migrant workers from wage protection and social security reduces human beings to tools that are disposable, replaceable, and silenced," said Glorene.
She added that all workers, including migrant workers, must be equally protected and said that employers EPF contributions must also be made mandatory for all foreign workers.
