An agreement has been made in a meeting in Naypyitaw that the 8,107 Myanmar workers who already have permission from the government will be sent to Malaysia with the original work visa fee of $6, U Kyaw Htin Kyaw, general secretary of Myanmar Foreign Employment Entrepreneurs Federation said.
“Our association, the Ministry of Labor and representatives from Malaysia Embassy have agreed to send these 8,000 plus workers with the original work visa fee of $6. However, any workers after that will need negotiation between Myanmar and Malaysian agencies,” U Kyaw Htin Kyaw said.
Starting from 18 January, the cost of a Malaysia visa for Myanmar workers was risen from $6 to $57 and the visa is to be given at a one-stop service center. As a consequence of the visa fee rising, Myanmar Foreign Employment Entrepreneurs Federation decided to stop sending workers to Malaysia.
“Because of this problem, we cannot send the workers and agencies from both sides are in trouble. The agencies from Malaysia are waiting for our workers,” Daw Ohnmar Myint, managing director of Thukha Su San foreign employment agency, said. Currently, there are over 9,000 workers waiting to go to Malaysia, she added.
“I came to Yangon a week ago as the agency told me that I can go to Malaysia. I have a place to stay in a monastery but other workers are staying in the guesthouses or their relative houses. It is difficult for us to wait and stay for a long time here,” said one worker who came from Kyaut Pan Daung township to Yangon to work in Malaysia.
The worker has to pay about K1.1 million to a foreign employment agency to work in Malaysia. There are currently more than 100 agencies which send workers to Malaysia and more than 3,600 workers are sent to Malaysia every year, according to Myanmar Foreign Employment Entrepreneurs Federation.
Source: Myanmar Business Today
