Crackdown opens door for legal migrant workers

PETALING JAYA: The crackdown on illegal migrant workers has created a greater demand for legal job seekers. The number of migrant workers from Nepal has increased more than two-fold after Malaysia started the operation to weed out illegal foreign workers.
A total of 3,264 foreign job-seekers obtained final approval for Malaysia from the Department of Foreign Employment in Nepal from July 5 and 11 compared with around 1,400 during the week before the crackdown, The Himalayan Times reported today.
"Job demand in Malaysia had saturated, as immigrants there used to get work easily without valid work permits before the immigration department launched action against them," the newspaper quoted Kumud Khanal, senior vice-president of the Nepal Association of Foreign Employment Agencies, as saying.
"The flow of Nepali foreign job-seekers to Malaysia has increased in recent weeks due to the prevailing tension in the Gulf region and the Malaysian government's action against illegal immigrants."
There are an estimated 600,000 immigrants working illegally in Malaysia.
"As the Malaysian government has tightened the noose around employers in Malaysia who hire illegal workers, they are now bound to seek workers with valid permits," Khanal said.
"Crackdown on more undocumented workers will also create opportunities for Nepali foreign job-seekers in the future."
Malaysia is among the most preferred labour destinations for Nepali outbound workers. Currently, around 500,000 Nepalis are working in Malaysia, the report added.