The Ministry of Human Resources (KESUMA) has urged all employers to take heed of the recent Shah Alam High Court ruling which upheld a decision in favour of 93 migrant workers in an unpaid wage case.
Human Resources Minister Steven Sim Chee Keong said the Oct 31 decision sends a strong message that failure to pay workers’ wages constitutes a serious breach of Malaysian labour laws and basic human rights.
“Any employer who brings in foreign workers to Malaysia is legally obliged to pay their wages as soon as they arrive, regardless of whether work has been assigned or not. If there are no available jobs, those workers should not have been recruited in the first place,” he said in a statement yesterday.
The Shah Alam High Court maintained the earlier Labour Court ruling dated Nov 8, 2024, which ordered a company to pay over RM760,000 in outstanding wages to 93 migrant workers who were left without employment upon arriving in Malaysia in 2023.
Sim said the verdict reaffirms the government’s stance that every worker (local or foreign) is entitled to fair treatment and lawful protection.
He added that all affected workers have since been successfully placed with new employers through the Special Employer Exchange Initiative under the Department of Labour Peninsular Malaysia (JTKSM).
“This decision sends a clear signal that the government will not compromise with any party that denies workers their rightful wages,” he said.
-HR HUB
