LETTERS: The Federation of Malaysian Manufacturers (FMM) says the manufacturing sector needs 600,000 foreign workers more in 2022 to restore output to pre-pandemic levels.
FMM president Tan Sri Soh Thian Lai says some new investments will still require low-skilled manpower for certain processes.
There is a pressing need for skilled production workers and general labour, as well as managers and engineers.
Agro-Entrepreneur Institute executive chairman Nordin Abdul Malek says the labour shortage in plantations, particularly in the oil palm sector, had resulted in losses of up to RM10 billion in 2021.
He adds that the problem has yet to be resolved.
However, industry recognises that in the long run reliance on foreign workers must be reduced, Manpower director-general Shakib Ahmad Shakir says.
We must either step up technical and vocational education and training or let it fade into insignificance.
A skills gap makes it difficult for individuals to find jobs and employers to hire trained personnel.
Shakib says TVET plays an important role in the matching of skills desired by employers and offered by workers.
The department has five priority areas: skill matching, skills for trade, digitalisation of TVET, skills for a green economy, and lifelong-learning.
It has also rolled out a comprehensive programme to nurture talent and cultivate a new way of thinking in relation to the Fourth Industrial Revolution.
Dr Rodziah Mohd RodziSpecial Officer (Research)Human Resources Ministry