Bosses fear labour shortage as amnesty programme ends

PETALING JAYA: With a day to go just before the end of the amnesty programme, employers are already fretting about the possible shortage of workers.

They want the government to come up with a clear plan on how to address this shortage when the amnesty ends tomorrow.

Construction company owner J. Louis, who has registered more than 100 of his mostly Bangladeshi workers under the 3+1 amnesty programme, said his firm still needed more manpower.

“We tried to hire Malaysians but they do not stay with us for long.

“Some of our workers did not meet the criteria under the amnesty programme so they have to go back.

“So, who will replace them?

“We do not want to close shop,” he said at the Immigration office in Jalan Duta yesterday.

The Immigration Department has vowed to launch a nationwide crackdown on illegal foreign workers from Aug 31. It said there would be no extension to the deadline.

Under the 3+1 amnesty programme, illegal immigrants are required to pay a RM300 fine and RM100 for a special pass allowing them to go back to their countries but they will have to bear the transportation cost.

Louis said he forked out about RM3,000 to settle compounds for his workers who had to be sent back.

“It is very taxing for me and I hope the authorities will come up with a solution,” he said.

Restaurant owner Fazri Idrus said he was at the Immigration office to apply for the amnesty pro- gramme for 12 Indonesian workers.

“We do not have enough workers and Malaysians mostly work with us for one or two months. After that, they do not want to work with us anymore.

“As an employer, we need manpower. How does the government expect us to handle this problem? We need a win-win solution to address this issue immediately,” he said.