The umbrella body for private sector unions expressed surprise that it had taken the government more than 20 years to realise that the reliance on foreign workers had deprived locals of being paid the RM2,700 minimum wage recommended by Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM).
MTUC secretary-general J Solomon said now that the government had acknowledged the situation, it should set an example by ensuring workers in government-linked companies (GLCs) and banks are paid a minimum salary of RM2,700.
He said unions had, for years, been telling the government that the influx of foreign workers was depressing the wage levels of Malaysian workers.
“What steps did the government take to curb the inflow of foreign workers since the 1980s? In addition to the misery caused to Malaysian workers by this, just three years ago the government made an announcement to bring in another 1.5 million foreign workers.
“Again, what action did the government take when unions voiced concern about the exploitation of foreign workers? It only fell on the deaf ears of the related ministries.”
Solomon was responding to a statement by Second Finance Minister Johari Abdul Ghani on Monday, urging employers to reduce their reliance on foreign workers and utilise technology to meet the minimum wage of RM2,700.
Solomon said: “The government cannot blame anyone but itself for the problems caused by excess foreign workers. This influx of foreign workers has caused extreme depression to Malaysians in the B40 and M40 category, whose rights to job opportunities and decent livelihood were robbed from them over the last 20 years.”
He said MTUC was surprised that “despite being the underlying cause of the influx of foreign workers”, the government was now asking businesses to pursue more automation so that they could pay better wages and ensure a decent life for Malaysian workers.
“Is it a case of too little, too late or misdirected attention again? MTUC welcomes technology but unfortunately the emphasis on technology is not directed to the labour intensive sectors where there is high dependency on foreign workers but rather in service sectors where there are largely Malaysians working.”
He claimed that the government and employers in the service sectors were aggressively using technology to the extent of laying off Malaysians who had served them for many years.
“Making the situation worse, the service sector is even getting rid of Malaysian workers and opting for automation and artificial intelligence merely to compete with the Western world, under the guise of remaining competent.
“The service sector is in a position to set an example by introducing the RM2,700 as recommended by BNM as most service providers are profiting in billions, not millions. Unfortunately, the wealth is not shared equitably.”
Solomon said if Johari wanted to do justice to Malaysians, he must first ensure that banks and GLCs under his ministry set the example by providing a minimum living wage of RM2,700. This is especially so, he said, as automation and technology had been a part of the bank scene since 1980s.
“The need to reduce foreign workers in banks in order to enjoy the BNM-recommended minimum wage does not arise as there are no foreign workers in the banks.”