Top Glove denies exploiting workers, Kula says probe ongoing
Glove manufacturer Top Glove Corporation Bhd has denied allegations of its migrant workers facing forced labour conditions, as reported in Britain's The Guardian.
Top Glove chairperson Lim Wee Chai admitted, however, that some workers could have worked beyond the stipulated 104-hour limit for overtime, a practice that the company vowed to put a stop to.
Lim could not provide accurate figures of workers who had done so, however...
Glove manufacturer Top Glove Corporation Bhd has denied allegations of its migrant workers facing forced labour conditions, as reported in Britain's The Guardian.
Top Glove chairperson Lim Wee Chai admitted, however, that some workers could have worked beyond the stipulated 104-hour limit for overtime, a practice that the company vowed to put a stop to.
Lim could not provide accurate figures of workers who had done so, however.
Nevertheless, he dismissed The Guardian exposé on the UK's National Health Service (NHS) using rubber gloves made by migrants subject to forced labour, forced overtime, debt bondage, withheld wages and passport confiscation.
"NHS accounts for only 0.5 per cent of our market to the United Kingdom. The negative report is not only wrong and erroneous, and the company will think of appropriate action.
"As a public listed company, the shares will rebound," Lim stressed.
According to Human Resources Minister M Kulasegaran, who toured a Top Glove factory in Meru today, the Labour Department was in the process of investigating the company.
Under investigation
Kulasegaran said action can be taken against the company under Section 99 of the Employment Act 1955 if any wrongdoing is discovered.
"The Labour Department has visited 22 of the 35 factories owned by Top Glove and are investigating it following the reports.
"The department has not only been visiting this company but other companies as well.
"We are investigating, and if true we will submit the papers to the Attorney-General's Chambers on whether to prosecute," he told reporters.
Under Section 99 of the Act, the employer can be fined RM10,000 if found guilty though Kulasegaran noted the act was one of the labour-related legislation being reviewed.
He reminded all companies that they could not make their employees work over a maximum of 104 hours a month as stated in the Employment (Limitation of Overtime Work) Regulations 1980.
The minister during his visit also asked two foreign workers from Bangladesh about their working conditions and they replied that they were satisfied.
Lim said foreign workers preferred to work overtime as they had nothing much to do in their spare time, unlike locals who had families and friends.
He denied the company held the passports of foreign workers saying they were kept in a locker to which the respective worker had access to.
Pointing to the Guardian report, the company chairperson it wrongly reported the company profits even though such information was publicly available online.
More automation
"Modern slavery is not a good practice and if our company is guilty of unfavourable working conditions for foreign labour then why do other countries and international companies continue to repeat their orders for our products?
"This company also takes in 1,000 local graduates who are engineers, accountants and others and contributes approximately RM100 million in tax," he said.
Lim said to reduce its reliance on foreign labour, the company was also looking into more automation in the near future.
Top Glove is the world's largest producer of medical gloves. It presently has 35 factories nationwide.
