PETALING JAYA: Parti Sosialis Malaysia (PSM) has called on human resources minister Steven Sim to look into the case of three Bangladeshi workers who were arrested after lodging reports with the police and labour department earlier this month.
PSM said the workers were among the 55 who filed a police report against their employer for not providing them work, withholding their passports and not paying their salaries.
They are also among the 14 who filed claims for unpaid wages with the labour department.
“While there seems to have been no action taken against the employer, the police have arrested the three men (on Thursday) under Section 506 and Section 323 of the Penal Code for criminal intimidation and for voluntarily causing hurt,” said PSM’s head of workers bureau, M Sivaranjani, in a statement.
“We believe these are trumped-up and fabricated allegations to silence the remaining workers, who now live in fear of arrest and further intimidation.
“The human resources minister has to look into this and ensure that the workers get their backdated wages and new employment.”
She said the ministry should ensure that the workers are protected and that their rights and welfare are safeguarded.
Sivaranjani also called on the police to release the three workers, who were remanded for four days on police bail yesterday, and to ensure that their passports are returned to them.
FMT has reached out to Sim, his aides, and Dang Wangi police chief Noor Dellhan Yahaya for comment.
On Wednesday, immigration department director-general Ruslin Jusoh warned employers it is against the law for them to withhold the passports of their foreign workers, a common practice among companies to prevent their labourers from job-hopping.
There have been numerous cases recently of Bangladeshi workers who were duped into coming to Malaysia for non-existent jobs.
Sim and home minister Saifuddin Nasution Ismail previously said employers who recruit workers without offering them jobs could face legal action under the Immigration Act 1959/63 for holding their workers’ passports, and under the Employment Act 1955 for failing to pay them.
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They may also face charges under the Employees’ Minimum Standards of Housing, Accommodations and Amenities Act 1990 for failing to provide proper accommodation, and will be investigated under the Anti-Trafficking in Persons and Anti-Smuggling of Migrants Act (Atipsom) 2007.
