Masing chides local workers for unwillingness to do certain jobs

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Masing (front right) presents a certificate of participation to Ironwall Sdn Bhd administrative manager Liv Cheing Seng.

KAPIT: Sarawakian workers have been chided for their unwillingness to take up certain jobs.

Deputy Chief Minister Tan Sri Datuk Amar Dr James Jemut Masing said many sectors in the state face a shortage of workers because Sarawakians refuse to take up jobs on offer, forcing employers to hire foreign workers.

“At times, the locals are choosy and lack the discipline to follow the work ethic and conduct. Not long ago, I was at Press Metal at Samalaju, Bintulu. The company operates 24 hours, or three shifts a day. The phenomenon is the locals, they don’t work for long. They ‘run away’ after a few months, while the foreign workers they stay back,” he said during the Labour Department’s Employment Carnival Programme here yesterday.

“My advice is local workers must follow the company rules and discipline. One of the problems highlighted was during the Gawai, local workers take long leave while the company only allows two or three days leave. How can this be? The locals take one or two weeks off. This is wrong.”

Masing pointed out that Sarawak is actually considered to have full employment as the unemployment rate is below 3.5 per cent.

“We are short of 10,000 workers for the oil palm plantations. Every year, RM1 billion is lost when the oil palm fruits are not harvested due to the labour shortage.

“Although social media has ‘cleverly’ criticised the government, but the problem of the labour shortage in the plantations is because the locals refuse the work. Foreign workers from neighbouring Indonesia are engaged because they are willing to work in the plantation sector to overcome the shortage,” he said.

Masing also pointed out that for last year, graduate employment stood at 44.8 per cent, while non-graduate employment was at 55.2 per cent.

A total of 20 employers opened booths at the carnival for registration and walk-in interviews.

Masing also witnessed 35 successful applicants receiving their letters of offer from various companies here.