Malaysian labour market to remain shut if conditions not met, warns Nur

The labour market in Malaysia will remain closed unless the Bangladesh government agrees to the conditions set by the Malaysian government for sending workers, warned State Minister for Expatriates' Welfare and Overseas Employment Nurul Haque Nur.

He came up with the warning while addressing a migrant conference organised by the Migrant Workers Development Program (OKUP) at Bijoy Ekattor Hall of the Expatriates' Welfare Building in the capital's Eskaton on Wednesday (6 May).

Speaking as chief guest, he said, "The Malaysian labour market was first closed in 2008. It was reopened in 2016, only to be closed again in 2018. It reopened once more in 2022 and was closed again in 2024, and it remains closed as of now. During the interim government, several meetings and visits took place, yet the market has not been reopened. Malaysia has set 10 conditions; even if these are met, no more than five to seven agencies would be permitted to send workers from Bangladesh."

He further said, "The interim government later waived three conditions and provided a list of 423 recruiting agencies. However, in reality, the market remains closed. If we do not agree to these conditions—whether we call it a syndicate or a fair recruitment system—the market will continue to stay closed. Our minister visited there a few days ago and stated that the agencies included in the list of 423 should be allowed to send workers under those conditions."

"Stating that neither the ministry nor any of its affiliated departments would take responsibility for corruption, the state minister said, 'We have clearly instructed all officials, including the Director General of the Wage Earners' Welfare Board and the Director General of BMET that we will not accept responsibility or blame for any wrongdoing on your part."

"We are accountable to the people and must remain among them. If such incidents occur under our watch, people will question why they happened while we were in charge, and that would reflect our failure. If we are unable to address these failures, then I will step aside. If I feel that I am failing to perform my duties, I will respectfully inform the Prime Minister, expressing my gratitude for the responsibility entrusted to me, and state that I am unable to continue in this role,'' he added.

Highlighting the conditions of the training centres, Nurul Haque Nur said, "We have 110 training centres and 50 more will be added. However, the need for so many training centres has not been properly verified. Although there are 110 centres, many of them do not have trainers to conduct the training. In addition, several MPs have submitted letters for more training centres in their respective areas during the last parliamentary sessions. If these are properly reviewed, it would be seen that many of these areas do not actually require training centres. Still, approvals are often given for political reasons. However, we are now trying to equip the training centres as per actual demand."

He further said, "I am well aware of the problems faced by expatriates, as I was previously associated with an organisation called Probashi Odhikar Parishad. I have observed several common issues, and I believe expatriates will be very happy if we can resolve them. The government will also receive widespread appreciation for doing so."

Stating that grading will be based on an evaluation of recruiting agencies' performance, he added, "We have decided to grade recruiting agencies in accordance with the law and relevant rules to prevent fraud and irregularities. We will assign grades after assessing their work so that people can understand which companies are reliable and more convenient for them."