The Ministry of Social Affairs has re-activated a job-placement office in an effort to urge Cambodians to apply for work in Malaysia through legal channels as opposed to accepting work that might not pay.
Oum Mean, general director of the ministry’s labor and vocational training department, said Cambodia and Malaysia reached an agreement late last year to re-open the office, which stalled during Southeast Asia’s financial troubles of 1997.
“Malaysia has a lot of jobs for Cambodian people, so anyone who is interested can apply,” said Oum Mean. He noted, however, that he does not know if there is a limit on the number of jobs .
In the past, many of Cambodia’s Muslim Chams were taken to Malaysia for jobs as housemaids, babysitters and factory workers. But a number of Chams were cheated of their initial investment before even reaching Malaysia to start work.
In one instance, reported recently in the Rasmei Kampuchea (Light of Cambodia) newspaper, 25 Malaysia-bound Chams were detained by Cambodian police until authorities made contact with their allegedly dishonest job brokers, who reportedly collected hundreds of dollars from each potential worker.
Oum Mean said most of this activity can be avoided if workers apply through government offices. The Social Affairs Ministry’s job-placement office was first opened in 1993 and aims to help Cambodians find work in other countries as well, he added.
Tens of thousands of Cambodians currently work in Malaysia, officials said. All initially are granted a one-month tourist visa and many eventually qualify for a resident visa in Malaysia.
One Asian diplomat suggested that a number of them are illegally working in Malaysia—either staying with legal families or illegally manufacturing visas.
He said the move by the Cambodian government was suggested by Malaysia, which hopes to better regulate all the foreign workers there, including Indonesians, Filipinos and Bangladeshis.
(Additional reporting by Kelly McEvers)
