The Malaysian Insight

FARMERS are finding it difficult to provide adequate housing for foreign workers under the government’s policies which were implemented in 2020.

The farmers said they are struggling to build dormitories for the workers as their farms are located on hills and rugged terrain.

They also said that due to their location in remote areas, they are unable to provide water and electricity supply to the workers’ quarters. Some have resorted to building wells and installing generators.

Employers are now required to follow guidelines under Act 446 (Employees’ Minimum Standards of Housing, Accommodations and Amenities Act 1990) to provide housing for the workers.

Federation of Malaysian Vegetable Farmers Association president Lim Ser Kwee said that most farmland is leased and used to cultivate short-term crops.

As such, he said the land is only used for up to three years, so it is a huge burden for farmers to build dormitories that meet the government’s requirements.

He said another issue faced by crop growers is that their land is located in remote areas where the authorities find a challenge to supply clean water and electricity.

“How are we to build dormitories if even the (authorities) are finding it difficult to provide electricity and water?

“Before formulating any regulations, the government should conduct on-the-spot inspections based on the needs of different industries and adjust the requirements to local conditions,” he said.

“They should also consider the difficulties the farmers are facing.”

Lim said that farmers have been suffering since the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic.

“There is shortage of manpower, which has led to low crop yield.

“Now the price of fertiliser has also gone up and the government has not provided assistance. Instead it has made unrealistic suggestions for farmers to switch to other types of fertilisers.”

He said previously small-scale farmers only employed three to five foreign workers and these farm hands had been provided accommodation, food and running water.

“How to build staff dormitories on these farmland which are leased? The certificate of fitness (CF) also needs the approval of the state government, so everything takes time.”

Lim added that some small-time farmers were not able to hire foreign workers to meet their manpower needs, so they have had to close the farm or start over with doing other businesses.

This, he said, could affect overall production as the output of certain locally grown vegetables may gradually decrease, and they will be forced to rely on imported vegetables.

“Most vegetable farmers operate small-scale businesses with only a few foreign workers.

“They simply cannot afford to build additional dormitories and can only afford to rent dormitories.”

He hopes that the government would be able to meet them halfway to prevent farmers all over the country from facing an economic crisis.

Lim said the government had implemented a centralised employee dormitory (CLQ) programme across the country and only large farm operators could afford to provide the required accommodation for foreign workers.

“No matter the size of the farm or the financial situation, it is difficult for small-scale farmers to provide housing that meets the legal guidelines.”

He said that the association had previously applied to the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Industry for 20,000 to 30,000 foreign workers.

“The Ministry of Agriculture knows what farmers need. For example, when we apply to hire 20 foreign workers, the Human Resources Department reduces the number to only five foreign workers. Why?

“We hope that the number of foreign workers approved for hiring should be based on the number submitted to the Ministry of Agriculture.”

Cameron Highlands Vegetable Growers Association secretary Chay Ee Mong said many employers are facing difficulties such as providing running water and electricity supply to the workers.

“Some use wells and generators for their amenities. It is difficult to provide water and electricity when farms are located in remote areas.”

He also said in the past year during the epidemic, the Immigration Department had completely frozen the application of legal foreign workers.

“So, farmers across the country are suffering from a shortage of workers.”

Chay said the association had repeatedly sent letters to relevant government departments, submitting memorandums on the plight of the farmers, but their calls were ignored.

He said that he attended an online forum hosted by the Ministry of Agriculture with officials from the Ministry of Housing and Local Government, the Human Resources Department and other officials.

“We told the authorities it is difficult to meet the stipulated guidelines for the dormitories and hoped that the government would give them a two-year grace period.

“The relevant authorities have agreed that it could be extended to April next year, before the conditions of accommodation must be improved.”

Chay added that land leasing in Cameron Highlands is managed by an agency appointed by the state government.

“The lease period allowed is three years with a two-year extension, which stipulates that farmers must obtain the MyGAP ( Malaysian Good Agricultural Practice) certificate.

“We once proposed the lease for 10 years, but the relevant agencies insisted on only extending the lease period based on farmers’ performance.”

On foreign workers, he said farmers who apply for the manpower must meet the conditions for building staff dormitories.

“In other words, if the dormitory problem is not solved, they cannot apply for foreign workers at all.

“Although the government requires farmers to apply for new foreign workers online, it is still necessary to get them through intermediaries.

“We can only assist in applying for foreign workers through government-approved intermediary companies, and of course, we must pay a fee.”

Chay also added that due to a shortage of workers, farmers have reduced their planting.

Malaysia Fruit Farmers Association president Hong Jok Hon said many farmers are waiting for the government to approve hiring of new foreign workers, but it is difficult for them to meet the staff dormitory requirement.

“We asked the government for 10,000 foreign workers, and we hoped that they would be from Indonesia.

“Because most of them can communicate in Malay, as there are communication problems with Bangladeshi workers.”

Due to the severe shortage of manpower, he said that many farmers have been forced to give up planting some varieties of fruits.

“In my orchard, there is no starfruit and most of the guava and jambu air planted by farmers in the past have been reduced.

“Currently, only palm oil and durian cultivation is feasible, and small-time farmers can only do so with relatives and former workers because no local people are willing to work in the fields.” – April 14, 2022.