“FMM cannot merely point fingers at recruitment agencies. These applications (to bring in foreign workers) cannot be made without demand and cooperation from companies,” Johari told FMT.
He was responding to FMM president Soh Thian Lai’s claim on Friday that the presence of foreign workers without jobs was likely the work of “unscrupulous agents who bring (them) in with the false promise of jobs awaiting them, while committing fraud through falsification of paperwork”.
“If there is proof that agencies were using fake documents to artificially increase the quotas asked for, then the agents responsible should be fined heftily,” said Johari.
Johari said that under the existing system, foreign workers will only be allowed into the country based on quotas applied for by companies.
“The issue here is that some companies request a foreign worker quota without having jobs available for them.
“Instead, they try to make money by selling their quotas to other companies. This is deemed as human trafficking or forced labour,” he said.
He said the “irresponsible” companies and agencies engaged in such practices must be penalised more severely.
On Thursday, Johari called for companies that bring in migrant workers without having jobs ready for them to be fined up to RM30,000 per worker. He said the fines could be used to defray the cost incurred by the government in repatriating the workers to their home countries.
Johari told FMT any company that applies for and secures a quota must ensure that there are jobs readily available to be filled as soon as the foreign workers arrive.
He said agencies and employers that are not involved in unscrupulous practices have no reason to be worried.
“I never called for the fines to be automatically imposed. The government would not act in such an arbitrary manner. Of course, all cases must be investigated first,” he said.
He said stricter measures are necessary as foreign workers who are stuck here without jobs will most likely end up taking away precious resources in terms of subsidy, healthcare, and infrastructure.
“There is also the risk that they would engage in criminal activities or add to the social problems,” he said.
Johari said there was also a need to show compassion for the suffering these foreign workers have to endure. “That is another reason action needs to be taken to eradicate the unscrupulous practices which land them in such difficulties”.
‘Scam’
Meanwhile, a director of a manufacturing company based in Selangor told FMT his company was the victim of a scam which saw more than 30 workers brought into the country discreetly.
“We believe signatures of our company’s representatives on some of the documents involved were forged by unknown persons.
“Our company headquarters and facility were subjected to several ‘visits’ by immigration and labour department officers looking for these workers,” the director, who requested anonymity, said.
He said his company never asked for the workers to be brought in, did not know they had landed in the country, and were not aware of their whereabouts.
“Our officers were also asked to explain to top officers in the immigration department how the workers got in under our company’s name,” he said.
The company director said that despite lengthy investigations lasting over several months, the matter remains unresolved and appears to have been left in abeyance by the authorities.