Latest news with #migrantworkers
Free Malaysia Today
18 hours ago
- Business
- Free Malaysia Today
74 Bangladeshi workers win RM1.5mil in claims over unpaid wages
A file pic showing a workers' dormitory. The 74 workers claimed they were left stranded in Malaysia with no work or wages and had to endure poor living conditions. (Bernama pic) PETALING JAYA : A group of Bangladeshi workers has won more than RM1.5 million in claims from their former employer due to unpaid wages and other breaches of their employment contracts. The Kuala Lumpur labour office had ordered Meranti Binamas Sdn Bhd to pay RM1.54 million to the 74 workers, who had lodged complaints through migrant rights group Tenaganita. In a statement, Tenaganita official Abdul Aziz Ismail said this was a 'significant payout' and a major win for migrant rights which showed that employers could be held accountable for breaching the rights of foreign workers. 'It has been a long road but we finally have a decision and an order from the labour office. By ordering Meranti Binamas to pay the amounts due, the labour department has sent a clear message that employers cannot exploit workers with impunity. 'This is a significant achievement for the workers and for Tenaganita. It sets yet another precedent that even large, seemingly untouchable companies can be held accountable when workers stand united and demand justice,' he said. Aziz urged the government to ensure the RM1.5 million is paid out in full quickly. It was reported that the workers paid up to RM25,000 each to secure jobs but were left stranded in Malaysia with no work or wages and enduring poor living conditions after arriving here. The workers had stayed in a crowded hostel in Pudu, KL, and went months without pay, with some said to have had suicidal thoughts. The labour department's order is separate from a case now before the Shah Alam High Court. In that suit, 33 workers are seeking RM1.71 million in damages, including the RM25,000 they each paid in fees to get to Malaysia and 18 months of wages they say they never received. They also want the court to declare them victims of job fraud and to bar the immigration department from detaining or deporting them until the case is disposed of. The suit names Meranti Binamas, the human resources ministry secretary-general, the immigration director-general, and the government as defendants. It was filed in March and is ongoing.
The Guardian
20 hours ago
- The Guardian
LA teachers are on the frontlines as Ice raids terrorize their students: ‘You are not alone'
One morning earlier this month, Melanie woke up to the news that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (Ice) had detained more than 40 migrant workers at a garment factory, as part of a series of raids across Los Angeles. Her high school, located downtown, is not too far away from where the arrests took place. She didn't want to go to school – but still drove there to complete her final exams. 'When I got to school, that fear didn't leave me. I might have been in a safe enough place but my family wasn't,' said Melanie, whose uncle and father work in the Fashion District, the neighborhood where the raid took place. She did not give her last name to protect her family's safety, since many members are undocumented. 'Overall, every second was daunting. It felt like time wouldn't move fast enough.' That fear still hasn't left. After her sister's graduation the following week, she and her family decided to go straight home instead of going to eat together at a restaurant. 'We knew it wouldn't be safe or smart to go out. Even though we usually do, whenever we have a special achievement in our lives we celebrate, this time we couldn't due to fear of being deported. We came straight home through the least common streets seeing as Ice has been by my school multiple times.' This is a feeling that Angélica, her social studies teacher who grew up undocumented and did not give her last name, knows all too well. She makes sure to keep track of Ice activity in the area and let Melanie and other affected students know. Because of own personal experiences, she is passionate about helping other undocumented youth navigate scholarships, internships, or jobs, and learn how to advocate for themselves safely. 'What people don't know is the copious amount of trauma living in a mixed-status family,' she said. 'There's a heavy presence of it everywhere. The fear will come up at random times. It's something students are always thinking about.' Across LA and the rest of the US, undocumented students and those with mixed-status families have been living in heightened fear amid the Ice raids over the last two weeks. Families are choosing to stay inside, skipping graduation ceremonies and foregoing grocery shopping. The raids sparked a series of protests against the deportations, which the Trump administration responded to by sending the national guard and marines to downtown LA. Experts say that these events could have serious negative impacts on mental health for children growing up, and also create long-term disparities in food security, academic performance and school attendance. 'These raids are going to be core memories and they will shape how a whole generation of children of undocumented immigrants understand legal vulnerability,' said Dr Laura Enriquez, an associate professor of Chicano/Latino studies at the University of California Irvine who has researched the long-term impacts of immigration policy on mixed-status families. Embedded in their local communities, teachers are now becoming the biggest advocates and resource distributors for their students, helping them develop longer term resiliency at school and beyond. Martha Meléndrez has been working as a psychiatric social worker (PSW) at a school near MacArthur Park in LA for the past four years. She services first-generation, English language development (ELD) newcomer students and a predominantly Latino community. Her community has faced Ice raids before: three months ago, a student at her school, who was a US citizen, had his mother taken away. She provided him with weekly check-ins and psychological counseling and information on legal support services to help the mother get court visits. At school, she also facilitated a series of community circles in her ELD classes, allowing students to discuss ongoing events and how it has affected them. 'Providing a space for students to process is absolutely critical right now,' she said. Many of her students are recent arrivals to the US who are applying for asylum and adapting to a new environment. 'They were able to find common ground and connection with other students about their fears, their hopes and their feelings.' As a former undocumented person and newcomer, Meléndrez channels her own perspective to inform her practice and outreach. 'I am part of this community. This provides me with a unique lens of what students and families are going through,' she said. That the new round of Ice raids happened so close to the end of the school year makes her worried about how students will be supported in the coming months. 'Right now, a lot of educators and PSWs, we are not able to provide that care for our school community because of summer. Unfortunately, they may not have access to a trusted adult and resources like during the academic year,' Meléndrez said, adding that the most common trauma responses for students right now may be excessive worry and nightmares about family separation. Throughout the Los Angeles United School District, which serves almost 400,000 students across more than 1,300 schools, there are 770 funded PSWs who provide mental health care and counseling onsite. However, not all schools can afford to have a PSW full-time or onsite; 95% are full-time in the second largest school district in the nation, according to an LAUSD spokesperson. The district also funds 171 student and family resource navigators, who provide referral and case management services within school-based health clinics. 'At this time, we are actively monitoring the mental health and wellness impact within the community related to recent activity and will develop appropriate strategies as needed,' said the LAUSD spokesperson, when asked if the district would be adding any PSW services. For now, Meléndrez has encouraged students and teachers to share and use the district's mental health family hotline, which the superintendent said at a press conference last week will be active 24/7 in the summer too. But students who normally rely on free lunches at school during the summer may be at a disadvantage, said Angélica, noting that at her school, about one out of every three students relied on a free breakfast and lunch program. Because of the fear of going outside with the Ice raids, she anticipates that more students will go hungry. In 2020, she volunteered to deliver dozens of boxes of food to students and families during the Covid-19 pandemic. Now, she recommends that LAUSD bring back the same food distribution efforts so that students and their families don't have to leave the house to get food. 'A lot of people are in lockdown right now and it's terrifying,' Angélica said. A district spokesperson said that breakfast and lunch will be served at 582 schools Monday through Friday during summer school and afterschool programming through 26 July. More than 90,000 are enrolled in the summer school session so far. Starting later this month, the district has asked the Los Angeles regional food bank to supplement these meals with produce bags at different school sites that can be taken home and shared with the whole family. Melanie, the student, has said that her family now relies on her cousin, who is a US citizen, to go out and purchase necessities like food and personal hygiene products they need. Alejandra, a fifth-year English language development teacher in South Central Los Angeles, said that building a relationship with her students is key to addressing what's going on. '[My students] have had a range of emotions. They miss their home country. I see my job as not necessarily talking to them, but to make space for them to talk to each other,' she said. Teachers typically do not ask about students' documentation status, but developing that rapport allows students to open up in times of crisis. 'Having trusting relationships and identifying those resources helps a lot,' Alejandra said. Creating a collective healing practice can positively impact undocumented children, who may feel high levels of uncertainty and isolation. Research shows that reframing their experiences as a strength can help build resilience. 'There is a reason that 'you are not alone' messaging is powerful in the immigrant justice movement,' said Dr Dana Rusch, an associate professor of clinical psychiatry at the University of Illinois Chicago. 'Social support and the sense of belonging we cultivate is a universal salve for suffering.' Despite the school year ending, teachers are continuing to organize to provide care for their students. Monica Caballero, a special education teacher at a middle school in Harbor City in the southern part of LA, volunteers to help coordinate one of the United Teachers of Los Angeles union rapid response networks where she helps respond to credible sightings of Ice and other federal agents in her local neighborhood community patrols. 'Everyone is inundated with tips and leads and we are all trying to do our best to verify and respond when needed,' Caballero said. Even though there's sometimes confusion with a false identification, 'the reality is if we go out and there's no activity, that is a best case scenario,' she said. On Instagram, organizations such as Union del Barrio, Self Defense Coalition LA, and other neighborhood patrol accounts have posted about Ice sightings in an effort to warn community members to stay indoors. Families have also relied upon a site called People over Papers, where users can submit photos and videos of suspected Ice activity and volunteers verify the sightings through a tedious process that involves reverse Google image searching and cross-checking with news reports and rapid response networks. In January, the Trump administration announced that schools and churches would no longer serve as sanctuary sites and that immigration authorities can enter to conduct arrests, rescinding 'protected area' guidance from the previous Biden administration that had focused on children and social service establishments. In response, volunteers had to cross out 'churches and schools' as safe place options on their materials. Caballero has passed out these updated information leaflets and hosted Know Your Rights trainings online. 'I'm Mexican American, my grandparents immigrated in the 1960s. I am fortunate enough to be documented and that's not the case for a lot of our community,' she said. 'It is the responsibility of those of us with documented status to protect the most vulnerable in our communities.'
South China Morning Post
2 days ago
- Politics
- South China Morning Post
Southeast Asian nations scramble to get citizens out as Iran-Israel conflict escalates
Southeast Asian nations are urging the evacuation of their citizens from Iran and Israel as the air war escalates, with Malaysia warning of 'rapidly deteriorating conditions' and Thailand preparing to bring back tens of thousands of migrant labourers from Israeli farms and factories. Thousands of Iranians have fled the capital of Tehran this week, since Israel launched strikes that have killed more than 220 people, mostly civilians. Two dozen have been killed in retaliatory missile attacks on Israeli territory. The escalating hostilities have triggered fears they could spill over into a regional conflict that threatens global security and potentially chokes off a crucial supply route for crude oil and gas from the Middle East Malaysia 's foreign ministry said that all those registered with its embassy in Iran were safe, but warned that the situation 'remains highly volatile and may worsen without warning'. Smoke rises in Tehran on Tuesday as the Israel-Iran air war continues. Photo: Social Media/Reuters
Independent Singapore
3 days ago
- General
- Independent Singapore
‘Why is this allowed to happen, and why is there no enforcement?' — Singaporean dismayed by the state of Lazarus Beach after migrant workers' day-off gathering
SINGAPORE: A local man who visited Lazarus Beach over the weekend said he was 'dismayed' by the state of the area after large groups of migrant workers gathered there to unwind on their day off. Posting on the r/askSingapore subreddit on Monday (Jun 16), the man shared that he was initially happy to see many foreign domestic workers and labourers enjoying themselves by the sea. However, his sentiments changed when he saw the condition the beach was left in. According to his post, snack wrappers and beer cans were scattered across the sand, with some even floating in the water. He also noted that public sinks were being used as 'makeshift showers,' while toilet floors, which were clean earlier in the day, had become slippery and grimy. He further claimed that some individuals had trespassed onto private resort grounds. 'I saw several of the men enter the private property of the resorts, get chased off by a helpless single staff member, only to return the instant she turns her back,' he wrote. Another issue that particularly upset him was the fishing. 'I saw men fishing and catching and keeping even baby fish—something local anglers advocate against because it destroys the sustainability of the hobby,' he said. 'Why is this allowed to happen, and why is there no enforcement?' he asked. 'The sight of the once pristine and beautiful Lazarus beachfront was, for the weekend, turned into a sight of callous environmental destruction – and nothing was done to stop it.' Despite his criticism, the man clarified that he was not against migrant workers using public spaces. 'I have long advocated that they do need a day of rest, and places to be – I have zero issue with their congregation at hotspots like Paya Lebar, East Coast, Farrer Park, and whatnot. They are also people, and people need spaces and community. What I cannot accept is the STATE of how they leave these spaces and places. I think we need to take an honest look at their behaviour every Saturday/Sunday.' 'It's infuriating, to say the least, that they're not respecting the public spaces…' In the discussion thread, one user said, 'I'm with you on this. Groups of MW are always playing cricket in this open field every weekend, and they leave behind lots of trash. I have reported on One Service and note that there are several cameras in the vicinity, but I'm not sure if any actions have been taken since you'll almost always get the generic responses that they'll look into it, and then a couple of days later, the case is closed. It's infuriating, to say the least, that they're not respecting the public spaces.' Another suggested, 'Report to Nparks. Suggest they deploy officers there to curb littering.' A third stated, 'Their numbers are large (e.g., all concentrated on Sun), and there's a lack of enforcement here, so that's what we get.' However, not everyone agreed with the negative generalisations. One user stepped in to defend the migrant worker community, writing, 'I actually saw most of them cleaning up at the end of the day. Collected their litter in a large plastic tarp and placed it next to the bin.' In other news, a diner took to social media to highlight a troubling incident at ABC Brickworks Market and Food Centre, where people allegedly stole cutlery and crockery from a hawker stall. In a post shared on the r/SingaporeRaw subreddit on Sunday (June 15), the diner uploaded photos showing a hawker, the missing utensils, and a handwritten sign. The sign read: 'Dear customers, in the past 10 operating days, 41 forks and 10 plates have been stolen. As a small Singapore business promoting sustainability, we kindly request their return. Authorities will be involved soon. Thank you and God bless.' Read more: Hawker appeals for the return of 41 forks and 10 plates stolen at ABC Brickworks Market and Food Centre Featured image by freepik (for illustration purposes only)
Free Malaysia Today
4 days ago
- Business
- Free Malaysia Today
Multinational corporation comes to aid of Bangladeshi workers
International Rights Advocates said the case involving the Bangladeshi workers is a powerful reminder that change is possible when corporations genuinely embrace accountability and collaboration. PETALING JAYA : A Japanese multinational corporation has stepped forward to provide monetary aid to 283 Bangladeshi workers who had reportedly gone without pay for seven months last year, an international human rights group said. Sony took 'meaningful and proactive steps to assist the workers, including providing much-needed financial assistance', International Rights Advocates (IRAdvocates) said. However, it did not disclose the amount. 'IRAdvocates applauds Sony for taking a constructive approach towards this situation and is grateful to Sony for its cooperation,' the group's founder and executive director, Terrence Collingsworth, said in a statement. Collingsworth said that when issues concerning the migrant workers first surfaced, IRAdvocates raised the matter with their previous employer, Kawaguchi Manufacturing Sdn Bhd, and certain manufacturers who were Kawaguchi's downstream customers. One such manufacturer was Sony, he said. To its credit, Sony raised its concerns with Kawaguchi and requested that the company promptly implement corrective measures after the allegations emerged, he said. He said Sony also stopped doing business with Kawaguchi. Collingsworth said the Kawaguchi case is a powerful reminder that change is possible when corporations genuinely embrace accountability and collaboration. 'IRAdvocates applaud Sony's constructive action, highlighting a path forward where companies uphold human rights sincerely, beyond mere words and empty promises,' he said. On Dec 18, it was reported that Kawaguchi had agreed to pay its foreign employees their overdue salaries, with the Putrajaya labour office agreeing to arrange for them to be employed by other companies. The company reached the decision five days after the workers held a peaceful protest outside the factory in Port Klang to demand the salaries owed to them. Separately, migrant labour rights activist Andy Hall, who referred the case to Collingsworth late last year, said Sony should be applauded for emulating Daikin Industries Ltd. In December, it was reported that Daikin, the world's largest air-conditioner manufacturer, contributed US$12,000 in emergency food and medical aid to the affected foreign workers. It also provided an additional amount of financial aid to each worker. 'The money Sony has provided is significant and will provide yet more respite for these victims of modern slavery, who remain in severe situations of debt bondage,' Hall told FMT.
