Johor Setting Up Task Force to Understand Why M’sians Are Leaving to Work in S’pore

While seeing Malaysians come to Singapore to work probably isn’t something that will leave any Singaporean surprised, it seems like there’s still more beneath the surface that needs to be discussed.

Recently, it was announced by Johor’s State human resource committee chairman Mohd Hairi Mad Shah that a task force will be set up in order to discuss issues regarding employment, as well as the issue regarding “brain drain” to Singapore.

According to Mohd Hairi, the Johor Human Capital Strategic Unit or Unit Strategik Modal Insan Johor (SMI) will be leading the task force.

Current State of Employment in Johor

As of now, it seems like Johor is facing the issue of not having enough locals who are willing to work in Johor.

“Currently, we are experiencing a lack of local workers for several main economic sectors in Johor such as service, commodities and manufacturing.

“When Malaysia reopened its borders on April 1, a lot of Malaysians received offers to work in the island republic.

“The currency exchange rate favours those that are earning Singapore dollars, which heavily influenced them to work there,” he told TheStar at the SMI Hari Raya open house on Wednesday (25 May).

In addition to that, Johor has been hit particularly hard by such a situation due to how close Johor is to Singapore, which has led to many locals choosing to cross the Causeway in search of higher incomes.

This was also the biggest factor that has resulted in the lack of local workers for Malaysian workforce as identified by Mohd Hairi.

“This trend will continue to increase where industry players are asking the government to resolve issues surrounding foreign workers as they are in need of employees,” he predicted.

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However, despite the current struggles, Mohd Hairi expressed hope in the task force being able to come up with a solution to the issue at hand.

“The task force’s main duty is to find ways to create employment opportunities that will meet the demand of both employers and employees in Johor,” he said.

He also noted that the task force will be conducting sessions with the Human Resources Ministry in Johor to discuss the matter.

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