PUTRAJAYA: The government allows foreign workers to change employers to address the labor shortage in the agriculture sector. The decision was reached during a meeting of the Joint Committee of the Ministry of Home Affairs and the Ministry of Human Resources on Foreign Worker Management today.

The Minister of Home Affairs, Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail, stated that the decision applies across industries, allowing workers to switch to other sectors if their designated sector is already full.

“I met with the Minister of Agriculture and Commodities, Datuk Seri Johari Abdul Ghani, this morning to get an accurate picture of the labor shortage issue in the agriculture sector. This is the method we will use because the option of repatriation is not possible as it would fall under forced labor. That would affect our rating.

“Employers have brought in workers, and clearly, they cannot provide employment. So, we allow the transfer of employers involving the workers,” he said at a press conference after the committee meeting today.

Earlier reports in the media highlighted the critical shortage of foreign workers, especially in the rubber sector, as approximately 420,000 hectares of rubber plantations remain untapped due to a lack of workers. Saifuddin mentioned that an estimated 70,000 more foreign workers are needed to meet the demand.

Additionally, Saifuddin stated that the committee also agreed to shorten the application period for bringing in foreign workers to the country from 29 months and 13 days to 15 months and 23 days.

“Previously, the process, approval, agency interviews, levy payment, conditional approval letter, waiting for a visa, visa issuance—all of these took 29 months and 13 days from quota application to worker entry,” he explained.

Furthermore, he mentioned that the decision was made to review the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with source countries to reevaluate agreements regarding fees, costs, contract terms, and health, as MoUs are dynamic. – UTUSAN