Wednesday, December 19, 2007

Losing out to foreign labor

The correlation between rising crime and high unemployment is well known.

There are significant numbers of those with little or no education or marketable skills, consisting largely of school dropouts and displaced estate workers (whose only job options are limited to unskilled or semiskilled work) in the country.

Those in this category find themselves deprived of decent earnings from the type of employment they are suited for due to the influx of cheap foreign labor, who can manage with lower pay because they have left their families in their home countries where the cost of living is lower.

Harsh economic realities and the frustration of making ends meet through odd jobs to support their families in the cities to which they have drifted to in search of a decent living and mounting debts may drive them to their wits’ end. This may well force them into a life of crime as a way out of their predicament.

The influx of cheap foreign labor distorts and unrealistically lowers the market value for semi-skilled and unskilled labor.

If this vulnerable labor sector were closed foreign labor and if the demand for such labor were sourced exclusively brethren will be able to earn a decent living.

This will no doubt result in a drop in crime.

Most developed countries like Australia and New Zealand take in only skilled or professionally trained workers from overseas and not unskilled workers. This measure is no doubt aimed at protecting the jobs of their unskilled citizens.

There will always be school dropouts and children who fail to make the grade academically, who are in need of unskilled and semi-skilled jobs.

In most developed countries where such jobs are exclusively reserved for their own citizens, it would not be a disaster or a tragedy if one child in the family does not make the grade academically as the child will still be able to earn a decent living.

There would also not be a gulf in the difference in lifestyles of the siblings.

This is true to say that our country has taken more foreign labors than our own citizens. Foreign labors can be seen and spotted everywhere in the street, town corners, even in low-cost flats which are for the medium-salary-citizens.

In years to come, foreign labors will be flooded in Malaysia, which has taken more of them than our citizens. If this happens, where will our citizens be at? Are there still working chances for us? Are there still places for us to stand and even have a proper work?

Is it that only they can be paid with lower pay, and they deserve all the working chances than us, the citizens; so, we will not even get a better job offer than the UNSKILLED FOREIGN LABORS? Think about it...

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