Online foreign worker recruitment system is running just fine, says Saravanan
KUALA LUMPUR: Human Resources Minister Datuk Seri M Saravanan (pic) has denied any malfunction in the online foreign worker recruitment system and said anyone who believed otherwise was welcome to go to Putrajaya and see for themselves.
Datuk Ngeh Koo Ham (PH-Beruas) had said when asking a supplementary question in the Dewan Rakyat on Tuesday (July 19) that the system was not working.
“I received complaints that one has to go to Putrajaya to amend company details. The Home Ministry and Immigration Department said the system is not functioning and asked us to come and apply after the end of August,” he said.
“The country has lost billions,” he claimed, adding that the Home and Human Resources ministers should bear the responsibility.
ALSO READ: Resolve shortage of foreign workers, say stakeholders
Responding to Ngeh’s claim, Saravanan (BN-Tapah) said there was no malfunction in the system.
“I challenge Beruas to come to Putrajaya after the Parliament session. Let’s talk,” he said.
“I invite Beruas to Putrajaya to check whether the system is working or not,” he said, with Ngeh responding that he was willing to accept the invitation.
On a related matter, Saravanan told the Dewan that all applications for foreign workers had to be done via the system and that employers did not have to go through agents.
“This is a new unit under the Human Resources Ministry and we need some time. To date we have approved more than 200,000 applications for foreign workers and employers no longer have to go through agents,” he said in response to a supplementary question by Datuk Seri Tiong King Sing (GPS-Bintulu).
ALSO READ: HR, Home ministries to hold meeting on July 18 on foreign workers recruitment issue, says Saravanan
Tiong had said it was his understanding that employers still had to go through agents to hire foreign workers, and asked why recruitment issues still persisted.
Saravanan also said claims that he had approved the intake of 200,000 Bangladeshi workers were untrue.
He said the quota for foreign workers is based on the various sectors’ needs, and not on citizenship.
“After the employer obtains approval for the foreign worker quota from (my ministry) and has paid the foreign worker levy to the Immigration Department, they can then decide which country to source the worker from,” he said.
ALSO READ: Three industry sectors allowed to hire foreign workers from 15 countries
Saravanan added that there are 15 source countries for foreign workers.
He was responding to a question by Datuk Abdullah Sani (PH-Kapar) on why the ministry had approved 200,000 applications for Bangladeshi workers.