Mr. Tan Sin Cheng, Datuk Eric Koh Seng Kiat, Ir. Loh Ban Ho, Mr. Chan Rong Sheng and Mr. Lim Loon Hock extended a warm welcome to Bangladesh High Commissioner in Malaysia, H.E. Md Shameem Ahsan at PCCCI 3rd Floor Pak Khuan Hall. Both parties exchanged views on the economic, trade and investment overview of the two countries, as well as the situation of Bangladeshi workers in Malaysia.
The representatives of the Bangladesh High Commission Office included Counsellor Ms. Farhana Ahmed Chowdhury and First Secretary Mr. Pranab Kumar Ghost.
He said that there are currently about 1.5 million Bangladeshi workers working in Malaysia, and Bangladesh is cooperating with Sabah and Sarawak to introduce the required workers to the two states, especially in the plantation sector.
Pranab Kumar said that Bangladesh lacks natural resources and mainly exports rice. It imports palm oil and machinery from Malaysia. There are currently 400 Malaysian companies have invested in Bangladesh, with a total investment of US$800 million. The Malaysian listed company DIY has also recently invested in Bangladesh.
Regarding Ir. Loh Ban Ho’s statement that Bangladeshi workers are disloyal to their original employers and often switch jobs, causing many problems for employers, Md Shameem said that the High Commission has found that in some cases, some Bangladeshi workers fled due to employers did not fulfill the promised salary or even owed them salary, as well as the poor working and living environment.
He pointed out that many Bangladeshi workers spent about RM20,000 to come to work through agents. If the employer did not fulfill the promised salary, it was one of the reasons they left from their original employers.
He believed that the effective way to solve this problem is that the Malaysian government should enforce laws to ensure employers provide proper working conditions and living environment for Bangladeshi workers.
Farhana Ahmed took the example of United Plantations Co., Ltd., which, through the government-to-government communication channel, eliminated the need for agents to bring in Bangladeshi workers, and each worker came to work at a cost of less than RM4,000, and United Plantations was able to retain these Bangladeshi workers well.
Pranab Kumar also welcomes the PCCCI to contact the High Commission for assistance on investment and labour issues.