Bangladeshi workers in Malaysia
We would like to thank the Malaysian government for taking steps to bring all foreign workers under its Social Security Organisation (Sosco) from January 1, 2019. There are about a million Bangladeshi migrant workers working in that country and those with valid work documents will receive a host of benefits including medical, temporary and permanent disablement, dependants' benefit and rehabilitation, as well as RM 6,500 for repatriation. This is very big news for our workers because till now the only coverage they received was the Workmen's Compensation Scheme which only provided for compensation when a worker met with an accident while on the job. It was a discriminatory policy, which has now been rectified.
There was no end to the sorry tales of Bangladeshi expatriate workers who have had to spend precious money to cover medical bills; monies that were destined to be sent back home. Now employers who hire legitimate foreign workers must register them with one of Sosco's 54 offices throughout Malaysia. The whole issue of compensation and medical benefit was brought to the fore due to the landslide that occurred in Bukit Kukus of Penang on October 19 killing eight people (including five Bangladeshis). As it so happened, many of the people who died in that incident lacked insurance coverage.
We are glad that Malaysian authorities have decided to extend its social security services to foreign workers who have contributed so much to that country's development. Hopefully Malaysian employers will be forthcoming in complying with registering foreign workers so that they get these benefits. Previously, many of our workers couldn't afford to get medical attention when they fell sick and had to leave their employment prematurely. This new provision will hopefully change things for the better for our workers in Malaysia.
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