No More Foreign Workers' Recruitment Until End of 2020, Says HR Minister

Human Resources Minister Datuk Seri M. Saravanan says that there will not be any new intake of foreign workers in all sectors until the end of 2020. Instead, Malaysians will be given priority to fill up job vacancies.

“We will not allow (new) foreign workers until the year end. They (foreigners) can come as tourists, if they are allowed, ” he said yesterday after launching the Human Resources Development Fund (HRDF) initiative under the National Economic Recovery Plan (Penjana) at his ministry.

“We will try to reduce foreign workers in the workforce besides giving priority to locals to secure jobs, ” he said. Saravanan added that there were now about two million foreign workers in Malaysia.

He said the ministry would assess the move by the end of the year to examine if it was effective in supporting unemployed Malaysians.

MEF Wants an End to Exploitation of Foreign Workers Recruitment

In order to help Malaysia reduce its dependence on foreign workers, Saravanan advised job seekers not to be choosy about jobs.

He also said that up to 40,000 jobs would be created for Malaysians who were unemployed after the Covid-19 pandemic through the HRDF’s Penjana initiative. 

“The job opportunities will be opened up in stages within six months from now, ” he added. To kickstart the initiative, 10 participating organisations would be providing 20,000 jobs, he said.

These are:

• The National Tech Association of Malaysia, 

• Tenaga Nasional Bhd, 

• Malaysia Digital Economy, 

• Brickfields Asia College, 

• Federation of Malaysian Manufacturers, 

• AEON, 

• 7-Eleven, 

• Grab, 

• Kelly,

• Care Concierge.

The minister stated these organisations would offer jobs and skills training through five strategic initiatives provided by the HRDF.

These initiatives are 

1. Placement and training, 

2. Skills enhancement and new skills training, 

3. Small and medium-scale industries (SME) development, 

4. B40 development; and 

5. “Gerak Insan Gemilang”.

He said the target group of these initiatives were unemployed graduates with diploma or degrees, local workers, SME owners and workers, Malaysians from the B40 group and youths.

Saravanan said the HRDF had provided RM250mil in matching grant through HRDF Penjana initiative.“People who have lost their jobs or unemployed graduates must grab this opportunity and improve their skills so that they will remain relevant in the job market, ” he added.

Malaysians who are interested to get jobs and undergo skills training through this initiative can register at www.penjanahrdf.com.my. 
 

Source: The Star/Bernama

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