Foreign employees to be registered in biometric system before illegal ones

PUTRAJAYA: The Cabinet wants the two million legal foreign workers in the country to be registered and included in the biometric system before starting on a similar exercise for the illegal ones, said Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin.

The Deputy Prime Minister said the Cabinet felt this should be done first, especially when there was information that unscrupulous people were trying to make quick profit from the Government’s intention to register illegal foreign workers in the country.

He said the Government was informed that certain parties, upon hearing about the amnesty move, had planned to turn the legal workers into illegals and make some money from the exercise.


“The Cabinet has decided to push back the timeline to register illegal foreign workers and instead concentrate on putting the legal ones into the biometric system first.

“The employers will be required to register their workers and details of this exercise, including its commencement date will be announced by the Home Ministry,” he said yesterday.

He added that although these workers had valid work permits, they must be in the biometric system so that their movements “especially from one work place to another” could be closely monitored.

The Star reported that the programme to legalise and grant amnesty to an estimated two million illegals in the country – scheduled to start on Monday – had been deferred to give the authorities more time to prepare for the mammoth exercise.

On June 23, the Government announced a two-week legalisation and amnesty exercise during which illegal foreign workers and their employers would be spared from legal action if they took part in the drive.

Meanwhile, according to a source, only illegals from 15 countries – Indonesia, India, Bangladesh, Thai­land, Cambodia, Nepal, Myanmar, Laos, Vietnam, the Philippines, Pakis­tan, Sri Lanka, Uzbekistan, Turk­menistan and Ka­zakhstan – and those working in sectors which had been experiencing a shortage would be allowed to paticipate in the exercise.

Indonesians, who made up the bulk of the illegals will only be legalised to work in the construction, agriculture, plantations and services sectors but their womenfolk will be allowed to work in the manufacturing sector.

“Approvals will only be given if there is a shortage.

“There will be no automatic approval,” he said.

Source:http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2011/7/8/nation/9055989&sec=nation

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