Foreign Workers In Malaysia Expected To Exceed Five Million By 2010

KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 4 (Bernama) -- The number of foreign workers in Malaysia is expected to exceed five million by 2010 and this will have a major impact on the employment situation in the country, said Malaysian Institute of Economic Research (MIER) executive director Prof Emeritus Datuk Dr Mohamed Ariff.

He said that currently there are some two million foreigners working legally in the country while the illegal ones was estimated at about 700,000 people.

"We need constructive policies to address this matter," he said when giving a talk to some 400 participants attending the Malaysian Student Leaders annual conference organised by the United Kingdom and Eire Students Council at a hotel here Saturday.

He said the policies must comprehensively and clearly address the economic sectors that should be allowed to use foreign manpower, like construction, plantations and services (domestic maids).

When met by reporters later, Mohamed said specific policies were needed to avoid direct competition for jobs between Malaysians and foreign workers.

"A case in point is the manufacturing sector. Employers will prefer foreign workers as the wages they will have to pay them will be lower than for locals. If they can, they will opt for a 100 per cent foreign workforce," he said.

On the economy, Mohamed said the efforts by the government to create the Northern Corridor Economic Region (NCER) and Iskandar Development Region (IDR) would spur economic growth.

Source : BERNAMA