6 months closed Malaysian jobs partially open

Malaysia's cabinet meeting has decided to take foreign workers to the plantation (palm oil), garment, jewelry and barber sectors in the first phase.

The Cabinet meeting has allocated a quota of 24 thousand 570 people for the plantation sector . Foreign workers must be taken to this approval quota by January 31. Malaysian Acting Ambassador for Nepal Mohammad Firdous Win Azman said that it was decided to allow foreign workers to be taken to the designated area. "The Malaysian government has decided to open the recruitment of foreign workers in many areas. Now the employer will be able to take workers from the source country to the designated area,' Acting Ambassador Azman told Kantipur, 'Plantation, Garment, Garhana and Barber sector are among the opened areas.' Chairman Kailash Khadka confirmed. "We have been instructed to start the medical examination of workers going to Malaysia. The licensed health institution will conduct health examinations of the workers from next Sunday,' he said. It is said to restart medical now, we will start now.'

Malaysia has connected 36 health institutions that have met the health standards to the Foreign Workers Central Management System (FWCMS) of Malaysia. The Malaysian Ministry of Home Affairs (KDN) will issue a 'calling visa' only after these institutions conduct a health examination and send a medical 'fit' report to FWCMS. According to the labor agreement of Nepal and Malaysia, there is a provision for free health examination of workers.

Some employers pay the fee at the time of medical. If the employer does not pay the medical fee in Nepal, it is mentioned in the contract that the employer will pay the fee in the first month . It is said that the process of workers going to Malaysia will proceed only after the medical fit.

Malaysia made a policy decision not to recruit new workers until further notice, saying that they have more migrant workers than they need and that migrant workers are being exploited. Malaysia had canceled the quota to bring workers after Baisakh 18 . The last day to enter Malaysia for those who have applied for a migrant worker visa by May 4 is May 31. Since then, not a single new worker has gone to Malaysia .

Malaysia has a policy of keeping only 15 percent of its total labor force as foreign workers . There is a figure of 17 million labor force in Malaysia . According to this, the maximum number of foreign workers allowed to work in Malaysia is 2.55 million. Until last February, the number of foreign workers reached 21 lakh 30 thousand 931 people. After the completion of the quota set for foreign workers till March 31, the quota of migrant workers including Nepal was stopped.

After the economic recession has affected the production and service sector in Malaysia, employers have not been able to employ new workers . Its effect was seen in the last fiscal year. In the financial year 079/80, two lakh 15 thousand Nepali workers were recruited. In the last financial year, there was a big drop in this number . And only 81 thousand people went to Malaysia . Unskilled workers working in Malaysia get a minimum wage of 1,500 ringgit (47,000 rupees) like local citizens. This minimum salary for unskilled workers is the highest compared to the Gulf countries,' said Vinod Thapa, outgoing president of the Non-Resident Nepali Association, 'Social security program has also been implemented here.' Thapa said that he will bear all the fees associated with it. "Most workers come to Malaysia at zero cost," he said. After the labor agreement with zero cost in 2075, Malaysia has prioritized Nepal.

The then labor minister Gokarn Bista signed a zero-cost labor agreement with Malaysia so that the workers would not have to bear any financial burden during the recruitment process. The period of this contract has also ended on last November 12. As Malaysia is a very important destination for Nepalis, it is imperative to renew the agreement, said Udayraj Pandey, the former ambassador to Malaysia. There are currently 5 lakh Nepalis working in Malaysia. They are said to be involved in security guards, tourism sector, furniture, cleaning and small industrial production.