adminKUALA LUMPUR, Oct 21 (Bernama) — The Malaysian Employers Federation (MEF) has urged the government to tighten enforcement against the misuse of foreign worker recruitment approvals to ensure foreign workers are employed only in approved sectors and occupations facing genuine labour shortages.
In a statement today, MEF said reports of foreign workers being employed as cashiers, retail assistants, service attendants and food service personnel raised concerns over whether existing recruitment policies were being properly implemented and enforced.
The federation emphasised that Malaysians must be given the first opportunity to fill available positions. Employers should make genuine efforts to recruit, train and retain local workers before turning to foreign labour.
“These efforts should include offering competitive and sustainable wages, improving working conditions, providing career progression and investing in skills development,” it said.
However, MEF acknowledged that foreign workers remained necessary for certain dirty, dangerous and difficult (3D) jobs and other positions that were difficult to fill and retain local employees in, even after reasonable efforts had been made to recruit Malaysians.
MEF also proposed tighter compliance checks, firm action against parties misusing recruitment approvals and stronger controls requiring employers to demonstrate genuine difficulties in hiring Malaysians before foreign worker applications were approved.
It called for better coordination and data sharing among relevant ministries and enforcement agencies, alongside periodic reviews of labour shortages to ensure recruitment approvals reflected actual demand.
The federation also urged the government to consider progressively expanding restrictions on foreign workers in selected occupations where local recruitment was viable. However, it cautioned that blanket restrictions could lead to labour shortages, higher operating costs and disruptions to essential services.
Meanwhile, MEF senior adviser for government, media and international engagement Datuk Dr Syed Hussain Syed Husman said foreign workers played an important role in sectors facing genuine labour shortages but should not become a substitute for developing the local workforce.
“The government must take firm action against employers, recruitment agents or other parties that misuse foreign worker approvals, circumvent sectoral restrictions or deploy foreign workers outside the occupations for which they have been authorised and approved,” he said.
He also warned that excessive reliance on imported labour without sufficient investment in local talent could expose Malaysia to labour supply disruptions, rising recruitment costs and structural weaknesses in productivity.
“The ultimate objective should not simply be to limit the number of foreign workers entering Malaysia. It must be to build a stronger Malaysian workforce that can support the country’s long-term economic sustainability,” he said.
— BERNAMA
