Strict housing rules a challenge for farmers
CAMERON Highlands authorities admit that farmers are facing labour shortage, saying one of the main reasons is housing regulation conflicts.
District Agricultural Head Officer Shazwan Safie said it was difficult for farmers to provide accommodation with certificate of fitness (CF) as they were not allowed to build living quarters on land with temporary occupation leases (TOL).
He said authorities had acknowledge this problem with the Labour Department and had suggested that employers rent houses outside the farm.
“The law states that if you want more workers, you need to fulfil housing requirements. The homes need to have a CF.
“It is difficult to build a home on the farm that can get a CF, thus why (authorities) suggest renting houses outside the farm, in town.
“Rent in Cameron Highlands is expensive. Many farmers cannot afford it. A unit can cost about RM1,000 per month. And farmers will need to provide transport,” he told the New Sunday Times.
He said farmers were forced build temporary quarters, such as makeshift zinc huts, on their land, which affected applications to hire more foreign workers.
He said his office would evaluate all farmers’ applications for foreign workers, adding that rules allowed only six workers per hectare, but that depended on the Home Ministry’s approval.
He said there were other criteria farmers needed to fulfil, such as the Good Agriculture Practice certification.
“For those with the certification, we may consider giving support because of the extra effort they put in their operations.
“But in most cases, they get approved for (fewer workers), and this causes the shortage.”
Immigration director-general Datuk Seri Mustafar Ali said the department understood farmers’ plight, and assured them that the department was taking a proactive approach to providing services to deal with the issue.
He said the department used an office at the District Islamic Affairs Department to provide documentation
services to foreign workers at Cameron Highlands.
“We are planning to set up a permanent office at a building owned by the district office,” he said, adding that the department was looking into setting up various counters, including one to process work passes. By Fernando Fong and Tasnim Lokman