KUALA LUMPUR, May 17 — A company in Johor that recruited 733 Bangladeshi workers for non-existent jobs in Pengerang will soon be charged in the Labour Court for failing to pay their wages amounting to RM1,035,557.50.

The Human Resources Ministry the company had been given 45 days and had agreed to settle payment in an out-of-court proceeding at the Dewan Serbaguna Taman Bayu Damai in Pengerang on February 5 that was also witnessed by an official from the Bangladeshi High Commission, but failed to do so.

“Following this case, the Johor Labour Department is now in the process of enforcing the order issued by the Labour Court to prosecute the employer in the Section Court under Section S69(4) of the Labour Act 1955.

“If convicted, the employer can be fined up to RM50,000 for each offence, in addition to the quantum of unpaid wages,” the ministry said in a statement today.

The ministry did not name the company; Malay Mail has also decided to withhold naming pending the charging in court.

The ministry said that a total of 10 investigation papers had been opened against the company, of which four had received approval to proceed with prosecution.

“While the rest have been given further instructions,” it said.

The ministry said that the company’s quota for hiring foreign workers has been cancelled on top of being blacklisted from applying to bring in new foreign workers.

It added that the Labour Department has found new employers for 692 out of the 733 affected workers.

The minister warned that there will be no compromise on those who violate Malaysian labour laws as the government will take stern action to protect the welfare of workers.

In February, it was reported that the 733 Bangladeshi workers had been awarded a payment of over RM1 million in backdated salaries, to be paid latest by March this year.

The workers who were taken to Pengerang are believed to have been out of work for three to six months and the suggested wages was on an average of RM1,412 per worker.

Human Resources Minister Steven Sim had touted the mediation outcome between the 733 Bangladeshi workers and the firm as a “landmark case” that is meant to send a strong signal to industries that have profited from the foreign worker recruitment system.

In a statement to announce the mediation outcome, Sim said the proceeding would set a precedent in other labour-related cases because it involves migrant workers who are brought in here through legal means but are not given jobs once they arrive.

Sepatately, an independent migrant worker rights specialist Andy Hall said that the alleged criminal syndicate trafficking Bangladeshi workers for forced labour in Malaysia remains firmly outside of the rule of law and impunity reigns with victims remain without any remedy at all. “Based on many years of unsuccessfully engaging the Malaysian government on these and many other similar cases of alleged human trafficking and forced labour, I conclude that a failed migrant work management and recruitment system continues to exist in the country that promotes impunity, is devoid of the rule of law and is systemically corrupt.

“There is little to no accountability for this dire situation, and no remediation at all of its victims.

“Malaysia's systemic inability to meaningfully combat labour trafficking, ensure remediation of victims and accountability of perpetrators warrants its immediate downgrade to Tier 3 in the upcoming 2024 US Department of State TIP Report,” he said in a statement.