Indonesian, Bangladesh embassies satisfactied with new centralised labour quarters

SUNGAI BULOH: The Indonesian and Bangladesh embassies today expressed their satisfaction with the centralised labour quarters (CLQs) provided for foreign workers involved in the MRT Sungai Buloh — Serdang — Putrajaya (SSP) line construction.
Bangladesh High Commissioner Shahidul Islam and Indonesia Embassy Transport Attachè Mocahamad Abduh were among those taken for a site visit to one of the CLQ in Sungai Buloh today.
Mass Rapid Transit Corporation Sdn Bhd (MRT Corp) has provided some thirteen centralised quarters for workers involved in the MRT Sungai Buloh — Serdang — Putrajaya (SSP) line construction.
The location where these CLQs located are Sungai Buloh (three), Cochrane (one) and Serdang (nine) with the maximum capacity of 9,300 beds.
MRT Corp director of strategic communication and stakeholder relations Datuk Najmuddin Abdullah said the CLQ concept was first introduced during the construction of the MRT Sungai Buloh — Kajang (SBK) line in 2012.
"We decide to adopt the concept for the SSP line workers because it is able to provide workers with safe, comfortable and convenient housing.
"We believe that when workers get enough rest, it will help to increase their productivity" said Najmuddin.
He added that the CLQs are the first of its kind in the country as each are equipped with various facilities for the workers to fully utilise.
Some of the facilities available include spacious cabins, surau, cafeterias, kitchen, entertainment and medical facilities as well as toilets and bathrooms.
"The CLQs also have state-of-the-art security systems whereby the workers must go through a ten-point facial recognition upon entering," he said.
Najmuddin also highlighted the improvement made to the SSP line's CLQs where now only six workers will be assigned to each room instead of eight and this was done following the adoption of the Malaysian Standard of Temporary Construction Site Workers Amenities and Accommodation (MS 2593:2015).
Meanwhile, MRT Corp standard and compliance director Syed Mahdhar Syed Hussain said that the implementation of CLQ by MRT Corp has set a precedent in the country.
"This CLQ implementation was seen as the best way to manage foreign construction workers in the country.
"Having seen for themselves the effectiveness and success of CLQ implementation, other companies are slowly adopting the model for their project," he explained.
The workers currently residing at the SSP line's CLQs are from 12 countries with the majority being from Bangladesh. Some other nationalities that are residing at all the CLQs includes Indonesia, Pakistan, China, Nepal, and Myanmar.
The construction of the SSP line, which started since Sept 2016, is currently at 6.2% completion. The first phase for the line is expected to be ready by July 2021 while full operation will be one year later.