Only 453 employment agencies left

Number of firms halved since 2017 after Private Employment Agencies Act amendments

KUALA LUMPUR: There are only 453 licensed private employment agencies in the country, says the Labour Department.

Prior to 2017, 1,000 licences were issued to such agencies but after amendments were made to the Private Employment Agencies Act, the number dropped to 453, said Labour Department of Peninsular Malaysia’s labour services director Mustaffa Kamal Bawaihii.

“The 453 agencies are those which really want to conduct the business.

“This is because it requires a big capital and deposit, compared to before,” Mustaffa said after the Seminar Knowledge Series yesterday.

The seminar was jointly organised by the Association of Employment Agencies Malaysia (Papa), the Malaysia National Association of Employment Agencies (Pikap) and the National Association of Human Resources Malaysia (Pusma).

The amendments, passed in August last year, would further increase the government’s ability to regulate recruitment activities of private employment agencies.

The amendments also include the classification of licences under three categories:

> Licence A – for the recruitment of local job seekers within Malaysia;

> Licence B – for local recruitment, deployment of Malaysians to work abroad, as well as to bring in foreign domestic workers; and

> Licence C – for recruitment and deployment of Malaysians to work abroad, to bring in foreign domestic and migrant workers.

Mustaffa said the 453 licences were mostly for categories B and C.

Meanwhile, Papa president Foo Yong Hooi urged the public to engage with licensed agencies for hiring foreign domestic or migrant workers.

“These licensed agencies will strictly adhere to the law and regulations as they have deposits placed with the government.

“Any infringement may cause their cash deposits to be forfeited,” he said.

The 453 agencies are those which really want to conduct the business. Mustaffa Kamal Bawaihii