KUCHING, Feb 17: Malaysian Trades Union Congress (MTUC) secretary-general J Solomon opines local security firms should invest in technology in order to attract and encourage locals to take up the work.
He was responding to the Human Resources Ministry statement on Feb 13, 2020, urging employers to prioritise local over foreigners to fill their job vacancies in accordance with the government’s policy.
He pointed out the statement is good advice, but also nothing new which has been repeated every now and then without concrete efforts to address the underlying problems which urgently need the attention of both the government and employers.
Solomon also highlighted MTUC has been raising these issues among others for decades but they have fallen on deaf ears, and emphasised the most important factor that is discouraging local workers is the ‘unlivable’ minimum wage of RM1,200 per month.
“In comparison to the ever increasing cost of living including lodging, the present beggarly wages is not seeing the desired effect of attracting the locals for these jobs.
“This is where employers should invest in technology and develop other security systems with higher wages that would encourage locals to pick up the jobs,” he pointed out in a press statement today.
Solomon also noted there is the need for Labour Department enforcement teams to look into the foreign workers who are presently working as security personnel.
He claimed that most foreign workers are at the mercy of their employers compared to locals who would fight for their rights if they are exploited.
“For example, we have many instances where the guards are working seven days a week and asked to work for 12 hours and denied rest days continuously.
“So, many security companies are lethargic when it comes to employing locals.”
He also opined that legislating effective wage policies based on living wages and investing in security technology and job contracts would be the way to go or else the ministry is likely to be saying the same things next year.
“A good start would be to pay a living wage of RM1,800 a month and you will see locals queueing up for these jobs.
“This formula is not rocket science. I don’t see any other way to encourage locals to take up jobs,” he said. — DayakDaily
