Employers refusing to screen workers will face action

KUALA LUMPUR: The government has asked the Attorney-General’s Chambers to identify the legal action that can be taken against employers who refuse to cooperate in its compulsory Covid-19 screenings for foreign workers.

Senior Minister (Security Cluster) Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob said there were still employers who refused to cooperate in screening their foreign workers.

“We will look into the existing laws and what kind of action can be taken against these employers,” he told a press conference here yesterday.

About 17,000 foreign workers had been screened since the government had made it mandatory for them to undergo Covid-19 screening from Dec 1.

Of the total, 550 were tested positive for the virus.

Ismail Sabri said 663 factories and 652 clinics have been involved in the screening exercise. Meanwhile, on the mandatory quarantine period for foreign travellers entering Malaysia, Ismail Sabri said they need to do a swab test within three days before departure.

“... upon arrival in Malaysia, they will be quarantined for seven days. However, if the travellers are unable to do a swab test before they fly back, they must undergo a swab test upon arrival in Malaysia and if they test negative, they will have to undergo a 10-day mandatory quarantine,” he said.

He also said from July 24 until yesterday, 86,344 individuals had returned to the country via international entry points and had been placed at 74 hotels and 17 Public Training Institutes and private institutions of higher learning throughout the country.

“Of this number, 528 individuals were sent to hospital for treatment and 75,613 were allowed to return home,” he said.