PUTRAJAYA, 24 Feb 2018:
The government is committed to implementing various efforts to reduce the dependence of foreign labour to achieve the target of limiting the employment of foreign workers at 15% for the country’s total employment rate by 2020, as outlined in the 11th Malaysia Plan (11MP).
Human Resources Minister Datuk Seri Dr Richard Riot said in a statement yesterday the percentage of foreign workers currently stood at 11.7%.
However, he said that by 2020, the country’s employment rate was projected to increase – to 15.3 million from 14.58 million last year (2017), with an average growth rate of 2.1% per annum from 2016 to 2020.
“With the expected total workforce of 15.3 million people by 2020, the policy to limit the employment of foreign workers at 15% will make the total dependence on foreign workers not exceeding 2.3 million people by 2020.”
Riot said the government is working towards reducing the dependence on foreign manpower – including by encouraging labour-intensive sectors to utilising modern technology.
“This move will help the government to achieve the goal of producing 35% of skilled workers by 2020 in line with the government’s efforts in strengthening the country’s Technical, Vocational Education and Training.”
– Bernama