New report: ‘Modern slavery’ in Malaysian electronics factories

Nearly one-third of the 350,000 workers in Malaysia’s electronics manufacturing sector – a major supplier for leading global brands – suffer labour conditions akin to “modern slavery”, said a report released on Wednesday. The study by US-based fair-labour organisation Verite said at least 28 per cent of workers toiling in Malaysian electronics factories, especially foreign migrants, were stuck in a spiral of indentured servitude, unable to pay off excessive recruitment fees. It added that its assessment of the problem, based on interviews with 501 electronics workers across the country, was likely “conservative” and “should be understood as a minimum estimate”.

These results suggest that forced labour is present in the Malaysian electronics industry in more than isolated incidents, and can indeed be characterised as widespread.

A study by US-based fair-labour organisation Verite

Malaysia’s electronics manufacturing sector is a linchpin of the economy, and a key global supplier of products such as semiconductors, computer peripherals, consumer electronics and communications equipment. It supplies major global brands such as Apple, Samsung and Sony. But the sector’s success rests in part on the backs of impoverished and vulnerable foreign workers from countries led by Indonesia, Nepal, India, Vietnam, Bangladesh and Burma, the Verite report said. A key factor in the exploitation was the prevalence of recruitment fees paid by workers, who typically go into debt to pay them. Recruits were often deceived about working conditions, salary levels, and terms for opting out of jobs. They often struggled to repay debts and faced new charges for leaving jobs early, the report added.

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