Malaysia has prohibited employing foreign workers, marking a significant setback for low-skilled labourers seeking immigration opportunities.
Malaysia has halted this practice after reopening its labour market in 2022 and recruiting foreign workers, especially those from Bangladesh. Notably, Bangladeshi workers preferred Saudi Arabia as their primary employment destination, with Malaysia being a close second.
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Malaysia’s Home Minister, Saifuddin Nasution Ismail, announced that starting June 1, the country will cease to admit foreign workers under existing quotas.
Malaysian Human Resources Minister Steven Sim, in remarks reported by Straits Times, stated that any future decisions regarding the recruitment of foreign workers will depend on a comprehensive assessment of the unused worker quotas by May 31 and the results of the labour recalibration program (RTK2.0), concluding on June 30, 2024.
As stated by Sim, the halt in the foreign worker hiring quota will continue with the migrant worker tally nearing the target set by the 12th Malaysia Plan (12MP). This pause has faced criticism from Bangladeshi workers, especially as the Malaysian government has set a limit that foreign worker numbers should not surpass 15% of the total workforce by 2025.
As of March 15, the Malaysian Immigration Department reported approximately 2.17 million foreign workers in Malaysia.
The relationship between Bangladesh and Malaysia, which includes a shared religious connection, saw an improvement in 2021 with the signing of a memorandum of understanding. This agreement ended a nearly four-year halt on labour recruitment by Malaysia, initially put in place due to allegations of misconduct and irregularities by Bangladeshi recruitment agencies.
