Nepal Govt Rejects Malaysia S New Labour Requirements

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The Nepalese government has rejected Malaysia’s new requirements for labour recruitment agencies, describing the criteria as unacceptable and contradictory to existing laws and policies.
According to an eKantipur report, Nepal’s Labour, Employment, and Social Security Ministry sent a diplomatic note to the Malaysian government on Tuesday, Nov 4, explaining how they could not fulfil the new criteria.
“The rules proposed by Malaysia would require amendments to our domestic laws. Right now, there is no possibility of doing that.
“The deployment of workers to Malaysia has long been conducted according to the Foreign Employment Act, national immigration policy, and a bilateral labour agreement between the two countries,” said a senior official from the Nepalese Prime Minister and Ministers Council Office, who was quoted in the report.
“The labour relations between Malaysia and Nepal are strong. However, any issues must be resolved through mutual consultation, not by setting unilateral conditions,” he added.
Further, he explained that the decision to reject the criteria had been made based on instructions from interim Prime Minister Sushila Karki, who currently holds the Labour and Foreign Affairs portfolios in the caretaker government formed after Gen Z led nationwide protests.
Nepal passportThe diplomatic note, issued via the Nepalese Foreign Affairs Ministry, was in response to Malaysia’s decision to impose 10 new criteria for selecting foreign labour agencies supplying migrant workers to Malaysia.
One of the criteria, which has been deemed highly controversial, stipulates that an agency wishing to send workers must have experience managing at least 3,000 workers in five years and successfully placing these workers in at least three countries.
Other stipulated conditions include having positive testimonials from at least five international employers, possessing a large permanent office (10,000 square feet) that has been operating for a minimum of three years, and having their own training centre.
Risk of labour syndicates
On Oct 27, Malaysia’s Foreign Ministry issued an official letter to the embassies of source countries (countries eligible to send migrant workers to Malaysia), including Nepal.
In the letter sighted by Malaysiakini, Putrajaya requested these governments to submit a list of all labour agencies capable of meeting these new requirements by Nov 15.
Malaysian Foreign MinistryIn response, at least two international organisations have condemned the Malaysian government’s new requirements for migrant worker recruitment, describing them as unfair, unrealistic, and potentially risking the revival of labour syndicates.
Earlier this week, the Bangladesh Association of International Recruiting Agencies (Baira) and the Nepal Association of Foreign Employment Agencies (Nafea) said the 10 criteria set by the Foreign Ministry were “impossible” to meet.
Both groups also claimed the requirements were merely a ploy to control the market and sideline new agencies, and that certain individuals in Malaysia had allegedly been the “masterminds” behind an attempt to reinstate these labour syndicates.
However, the Foreign Ministry has clarified that any questions regarding the criteria and migrant worker recruitment policy should be referred to the Human Resources Ministry as the lead ministry on the matter.
ADSM’sia-Nepal meeting
Meanwhile, the Nepalese government announced that a joint technical committee meeting would be held to discuss the issue, while reiterating its commitment to ensuring the welfare and safety of Nepalese workers in Malaysia.
Karki was reported to have instructed Foreign Secretary Amrit Kumar Rai to hold high-level consultations with the Malaysian government, including discussions with Malaysia’s acting ambassador in Kathmandu.
Malaysiakini also recently reported that Malaysia’s move to tighten the eligibility of migrant worker supply agencies has allegedly sparked corruption in Nepal, a key labour supplier for security personnel in Malaysia.
According to sources, at least five agencies in Nepal have recently paid between RM1 million and RM1.5 million to a syndicate that has alleged “close ties” with individuals who could influence the approval of worker quotas to Malaysia. - Mkini

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