Federation calls for national action plan to tackle worker housing shortage
Soh added that the Ministry of Local Government and Development, the Ministry of Human Resources, and local authorities should be engaged to see fast-tracked approvals for CLQ and TLQ development.
KUCHING (May 3): The Federation of Malaysian Manufacturing (FMM) has called for a National Action Plan on Labour Quarters to address the critical shortage of Centralised Labour Quarters (CLQ) and Temporary Labour Quarters (TLQ) across the country.
Its president Tan Sri Dato Soh Thian Lai said CLQ and TLQ are in high demand, particularly in key industrial zones and logistics hubs.
'This shortfall continues to affect worker welfare and places pressure on employers tasked with compliance under Act 446, the Employees' Minimum Standards of Housing, Accommodations and Amenities Act 1990,' he said in a statement yesterday.
As such, Soh added that the Ministry of Local Government and Development, the Ministry of Human Resources, and local authorities should be engaged to see fast-tracked approvals for CLQ and TLQ development.
He proposed that the government come up with targeted incentives for developers and employers to build or retrofit proper worker housing, while calling for public-Private Partnership (PPP) models aligned with local and industrial development strategies.
He also said FMM welcomes Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim's keynote address on Labour Day, which captured the spirit of inclusive development and justice for the workforce.
'His bold assertion that 'one-room-one-toilet housing is no longer suitable', and his challenge that 'when there are so many facilities for the rich, it should not be impossible to find land to build decent homes for workers' reflect an urgent national priority that deserves broad support.'
Additionally, Soh said FMM acknowledges Human Resources Minister Steven Sim's remark on the notable reduction in the national employment rate to 3.1 per cent, the lowest in recent years.
He was also delighted to note the increase in female labour force participation to 56.2 per cent, a meaningful milestone in gender empowerment and economic inclusion, as well as the launch of the Kad Pekerja Madani, integrating worker identification, and social protection via discounts of up to 30 per cent from over 100 companies offering essential goods and services.
Furthermore, Soh believed that the MyFutureJobs mobile application, an AI-driven job matching platform, will support the digital transformation of Malaysia's labour market.
He said FMM is ready to support the utilisation and continuous improvement of the MyFutureJobs system through industry collaboration, ensuring it remains responsive to real-time market demand, skills matching, and sectoral workforce planning.
'FMM remains committed to working closely with the government in ensuring that economic progress is matched by meaningful social protection and long-term workforce resilience,' he added.
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