Home Ministry expands scope of rehiring programme to cover 17 extra sectors

PUTRAJAYA: The Home Ministry has expanded 17 subsectors under the services industry to enable employers and illegal foreign workers to register under the Rehiring programme.
Deputy Home Minister Datuk Nur Jazlan Mohamed (pix) said the purpose of the "relaxation" is to allow illegal workers who are qualified to register themselves under the programme.
"It will also ease the complications that employers face when registering their workers under this programme," Nur Jazlan said during a press conference after chairing a meeting with industry representatives on the management of foreign workers, held at his ministry here.
The 17 subsectors are: golf caddy, theme park, laundry, barber, wholesale and retail, textile, jewellery, welfare house workers, general worker in a workshop,
car wash, market, gas station, hypermarket, mining, mangrove and timber, warehouse, cargo at the port.
Nur Jazlan said due to safety reasons, his ministry would freeze the registration of illegal workers in the perishable sector and airport cargo management.
The Rehiring program is aimed at giving illegal workers in Malaysia a chance to obtain valid work permits to meet labour demands in specific sectors.
To date about 111,410 illegal workers have registered under the programme with the deadline only a month away.
Meanwhile, Nur Jazlan said the Attorney-General's Chambers have approved his ministry's request to only impose compounds on illegal workers who entered Malaysia without valid travel documents.
He said illegal workers who are caught must pay a compound of RM300, and an additional RM100 for a special pass to stay in the country.
"I urge all illegal workers in this country to take advantage of this programme and quickly register themselves," he said.