...Temporary foreign worker program – Tim Hortons Introduced in 2002 and modified in 2007, this program allows employers to hire employees in occupations that usually require at most a high school diploma or a maximum of 2 years of job specific training. Visas maybe issued for 24 months. Employers are required to cover recruitment and return airfare costs, to ensure that suitable accommodation is available, to provide medical coverage until the employee is covered under a provincial plan and to sign an employee/employer contract. The work permit is issued with reference to a specific employer. Employees generally work in sectors such as cleaning, hospitality, manufacturing, oil and gas and construction. (Elgersma, 2007) Tim Hortons "is a company that a lot of Canadians identify with and it is very proudly a Canadian brand," says Howard Ramos, an associate professor of sociology at Dalhousie University in Halifax. "But it's also a company that is a pioneer in hiring temporary foreign workers and so for this reason I think it's important to highlight Tim Hortons as an exemplar of how the temporary foreign worker program has changed and expanded. (Davison, 2012) The temporary foreign worker program has man is a resort companies use to hiring as they will have exhausted all other avenues for finding employees locally. It is a great program mainly for foreign workers who come and work in Canada and if they like it here they can apply for permanent residency. Unlike immigrants...
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...Employment Of Foreign Workers In Malaysia INDEX 1. Executive Summary 2. Introduction 3. Analysis 4. Challenges 5. Implications 6. Recommendations 7. Conclusion 8. References 1.0 Executive Summary The report investigates on the issue of employment of foreign workers in Malaysia. During the British colonial period in the early nineteenth century, Malaysia was a net receiver of foreign nationals who came to work in the plantations, mines, and construction sectors. Nowadays, rapid industrialization, urbanization, strong economic growth led to labour shortages in rural areas and plantation sectors due to rejection of locals to work in these industries. There are some changes and policy reforms since early 2000 regarding the employment of foreign workers, which includes: Amendments to the Employment Act and Equality in Treatment and Enforcement of Laws. There is also a proposel regarding Foreign Workers Act. The report analyses the advantages and disadvantages of employing foreign workers. Among the advantages are availability of low cost labour, willingness to work for long hours and availability of abundant foreign workforce. Nonetheless, there are also drawbacks to employing foreign workers including rapid expansion of population and increasing in level of unemployment of locals. The main issue is exploitation of foreign worker in Malaysia. Foreign workers are exploited by their employers in different ways, for instance, wage manipulation...
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...1- Why are foreign workers a vital source of competitive advantage for U.S. firms in certain industries? What are the limitations of U.S. workers in some of these fields? Foreign workers have proved to be a vital source of labor for a large number of USA firms. This is because they possess high skills, which are not available among local American citizens. In some technical industries such as nursing and computer programming, there is a shortage of skilled personnel. Consequently, firms have opted to seek qualified employees from all over the world. For example, Microsoft Company has employed a very large number of foreign workers. In fact, it is the leading company with the highest number of foreign employees. USA workers are limited in the level of skills required by some fields. For example, the co-founder of Google Company came from Russia. He was granted H-1B visa, which means he acquired legal residence on the basis of his high level skills. This limitation of skills among USA workers has brought controversy. USA citizen workers are being laid off yet there is an increasing level of hiring foreign workers. Many politicians are against this trend and they are demanding for an action to curb this situation. One of the suggestions is to reduce H-1B visas in order to protect jobs for American citizens. 2- If it is true that the recent changes in the number of H-1B visas reflect an “antiemployer” attitude, what groups might consider these new policies as “pro someone else...
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...Employment of Foreign Workers: Local Employability and Trade Union Roles in Malaysia Ramesh Kumar Moona Haji Mohamed (PhD Candidate), School of Distance Education, 11800,Universiti Sains Malaysia Email: rameshk@utar.edu.my Charles Ramendran SPR Faculty of Business & Finance, UTAR Email: charlesr@utar.edu.my Peter Yacob Faculty of Business & Finance, UTAR Email: petery@utar.edu.my Abstract The issue of foreign workers has received increase media and national attention. However, to date there has been limited research on the nature and consequences of employment of foreign workers in Malaysia. Introduction of significant changes in recruitment phenomenon has ended in painful and traumatic atmosphere which barely acceptable by local workforce in Malaysia. This conceptual paper can be derived from the field of industrial relations which play a significant role in employment of foreign workers. The article reports on the preliminary findings on employment status of local workforce and trade union rights affected by employment of foreign workers. In addition, the research makes a number of recommendations, including the need for further development on reducing the employment of foreign workers and more refined targeting of vulnerable foreign workers linked with labor legislations. Keywords: Malaysia, foreign workers, trade union rights, local workers and employability Introduction For over the past decade, Malaysia has over dependence on the foreign workers the number...
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...“HAS the machine in its last furious manifestation begun to eliminate workers faster than new tasks can be found for them?” wonders Stuart Chase, an American writer. “Mechanical devices are already ousting skilled clerical workers and replacing them with operators...Opportunity in the white-collar services is being steadily undermined.” The anxiety sounds thoroughly contemporary. But Mr Chase's publisher, MacMillan, “set up and electrotyped” his book, “Men and Machines”, in 1929. The worry about “exporting” jobs that currently grips America, Germany and Japan is essentially the same as Mr Chase's worry about mechanisation 75 years ago. When companies move manufacturing plants from Japan to China, or call-centre workers from America to India, they are changing the way they produce things. This change in production technology has the same effect as automation: some workers in America, Germany and Japan lose their jobs as machines or foreign workers take over. This fans fears of rising unemployment. What the worriers always forget is that the same changes in production technology that destroy jobs also create new ones. Because machines and foreign workers can perform the same work more cheaply, the cost of production falls. That means higher profits and lower prices, lifting demand for new goods and services. Entrepreneurs set up new businesses to meet demand for these new necessities of life, creating new jobs. As Alan Greenspan, chairman of America's Federal Reserve Bank...
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...Lastly, recruitment of foreign workers could possibly be the easiest way to help overcome the shortage of local labor at construction sites . It is well understood that the major cause of manpower shortage is the employers’ reluctance to pay higher wages to the locals, which would consequently increase their expenditure (Abdul Rahim Abdul Hamid, Bachan Singh, Aminah Md Yusof & Nur Ahikin M. Abdullah, 2011) . For this particular reason, the number of local workers keeps lessening each year, resulting in a massive employment of foreign workers instead. The former Minister of Human Resources, Datuk Seri Dr Fong Chan Onn stated that despite Malaysia currently having about 1.8 million foreign workers, there are still hundreds of applications submitted every month by local companies to the Home Affairs Ministry, requesting to hire more foreign workers (Bernama, 2006) . The statement evidently proves that the demand for foreign construction workers is tremendously high, due to the shortage of local workers. Another cause of labor shortage is local preferences. The locals refuse to work at construction sites generally because they prefer easier jobs. This is especially true when they have higher education levels, which enable them to demand for jobs that have good image...
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...Is it fair to workers of developed countries when companies shift work to lower wage countries? The main reason companies shift work to lower wage countries is to reduce operating costs. Low labour, production, and energy costs in countries such as China, Japan, India, and Mexico is causing companies to shut their factories within the United States and open new factories in those foreign countries. This leads to the loss of jobs within the United States, a lower standard of quality, and resentment by those who are living within the United seeing more and more of their jobs going overseas. In 1994, NAFTA (North American Free Trade Agreement) was passed by then President Bill Clinton. His goal was to open the trade routes to all countries. Unfortunately, it led to many plants moving across the borders to Canada and Mexico. While outsourcing had begun in the 1980s, it grew by leaps and bounds in the latter part of the 1990s. Jobs went overseas to China, Japan, and India and the economy began to falter as American's lost their jobs and suddenly faced living on minimum wage as higher paying jobs went to these other countries. By looking at the average annual salaries in these other countries, it is easy to understand why companies find it appealing to outsource their business. Especially in China where the average yearly salary is significantly lower than their American and European counterparts. • China - $1,290 • India - $14,500 • Japan - $17,000 to...
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...Overview Malaysia has always been a hotspot and the country of choice for many foreign workers looking for a better job and prospect of life. Immigrants from countries such as Bangladesh, Indonesia, Vietnam and Philippines pour in to our country yearly in search of jobs. Malaysia has and still welcomes foreign workers to enter our country to work in certain sectors, provided that they have valid and proper documents. Sadly, many immigrants are coming in illegally and those who fail to obtain a job are resorting to crime to earn a living. Resulting in many problems and discomfort for the society and government. Analysis Recent cases have shown many illegal Bangladeshi are pouring into the country posing mostly as foreign students and sometimes as tourists. (http://www.thestar.com.my/News/Nation/2013/11/03/Influx-of-workers-posing-as-students-Thousands-of-Bangladeshis-aided-by-institutions-working-with-hu.aspx) There are approximately 3.1million legal and illegal foreign workers in Malaysia today. (http://www.nst.com.my/latest/2-8-million-legal-illegal-foreign-workers-in-msia-1.317515) Statistics have shown that Malaysia is seeing fewer skilled foreign workers and expatriates, while low-skilled migrant workers flood our shores. Malaysia’s rapid economic growth accompanied with shortages for unskilled workers continue to attract foreign workers from neighbouring countries. The differences in growth differentials and overall educational gaps between the labour...
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...Along Geylang’s main road, the people observed seem like regular, middle-aged working adults who come to the coffee-shops for dinner. However, we see a flurry of activity, both legal and illegal, as we walk into the back lanes of the Geylang ‘lorongs’, and the groups of people frequenting those lanes dress and behave differently from many of those seen on the main road. The most prominent group would be the streetwalkers and their pimps, who roam certain lanes targeting both foreign and local men. Among the streetwalkers, we identified two distinct groups – those of age (who seemed experienced) and those who looked under-age. A line of skimpily-dressed Vietnamese and Chinese girls who looked to be in their mid-teens shrunk against the wall as we passed by. From their cautious demeanour towards strangers, we inferred that they were illegally trafficked and were afraid of getting discovered or caught. We felt that those underage girls may have been forced into the act as they seemed unwilling and unhappy to be there. The pimps and the Thai women, in their thirties, were more brazen, and followed us from the alley to the roadside while they actively solicited the males for sex. An illegal gambling den was also set up involving at least 30 gamblers around a makeshift wooden table, most of whom were Chinese nationals. We noticed a few spotters patrolling the alley and keeping a lookout by the roadside. They looked at us suspiciously but let us pass through. However, they stopped an...
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...Nepal 28 November 2013 Mandeep Karn Dibayashwor Raj Baidya Organized by National Banking Training Institute (NBTI) in association with the Asian Development Bank (ADB), and hosted by the Mr. Sanjib Subba, CEO and Company Secretary, NBTI. Acknowledgement APEX College would like to express its gratitude to the National Banking Training Institute for the great learning experience opportunity and report on ‘NATIONAL CONFERENCE ON REMITTANCE FOR DEVELOPMENT IN NEPAL’ . This allowed us to participate and gather crucial conference details, data and information in regards to remittance and migrant workers of Nepal. The topic is pertinent to the current Nepalese context. All are related to recent conference ‘National Remittance Conference- 2013: national conference on remittance for development in Nepal’. Abstract A remittance is basically the transfer of money by a foreign worker to his or her home country or simply sending an amount of money from one country to another. Money sent home by migrants constitutes the second largest financial inflow to many developing countries, exceeding international aid. According to World Bank report in 2012, $401 billion new remittance record went to developing countries with overall global remittances (including developed countries) topped $514 billion. Our economy at large is remittance based economy. Remittance accounts for 25% of GDP (Gross Domestic Product) which is largest in terms of contribution to overall GDP in South Asia and third...
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...owned and run by individuals not by the government. Public sector: the part of the economy owned by government or its agents. Representation: to speak, act or present officially for another person. The voluntary sector UNISON members are employed in Schools, colleges and universities Gas, electricity and water companies Transport Job roles they represent in the public sector include, for example: • librarians • Human Resources, IT and finance workers • teaching assistants and early years nursery staff • secretaries • cleaners, caretakers and school meals supervisors • care workers, social workers and nurses. UNISON campaigns on a variety of issues relevant to its members. Currently, it is running the Migrant Workers Participation Project. This campaign focuses on the issues faced by migrant workers in the UK. Migrant workers are employees who have moved from overseas to the UK to find work. They form an important and growing part of the workforce in both the private sector and public sector. These workers are at particular risk of being exploited in the workplace. This may be due to lack of knowledge of their rights, their limited command of the English language and the fact that they are often reluctant to complain about their treatment by employers. They may also be...
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...universities UNISON members are employed in Gas, electricity and water companies Transport Job roles they represent in the public sector include, for example: • librarians • Human Resources, IT and finance workers • teaching assistants and early years nursery staff • secretaries • cleaners, caretakers and school meals supervisors • care workers, social workers and nurses. Trade union: an organisation that represents the mutual interests of employees across a range of issues. Voluntary sector: the part of the economy which is made up of for example charities and non-profit making organisations. Private sector: the part of the economy owned and run by individuals not by the government. Public sector: the part of the economy owned by government or its agents. Representation: to speak, act or present officially for another person. UNISON campaigns on a variety of issues relevant to its members. Currently, it is running the Migrant Workers Participation Project. This campaign focuses on the issues faced by migrant workers in the UK. Migrant workers are employees who have moved from overseas to the UK to find work. They form an important and growing part of the workforce in both the private sector and public sector. These workers are at particular risk of being exploited in the workplace. This may be due to lack of knowledge of their rights, their limited command of...
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...A Suicide Survivor: The Life of a Chinese Migrant Worker at Foxconn Sunday, 25 August 2013 12:50By Jenny Chan, The Asia-Pacific Journal | In 2010, 18 employees working for Foxconn in China attempted suicide. These shocking events focused world attention on the manufacturing supply chains of China's export industry and the experience of working within them. What had driven these young migrant assembly line workers to commit such a desperate act? This article provides a first-hand account of the experiences of one of those who survived a suicide attempt, 17-year-old Tian Yu. Her personal narrative is embedded within the broader context of labour process, work organisation and managerial practice at Foxconn, the Taiwaneseowned multinational whose 1.4 million Chinese workers provide products and components for Apple and others. Factory conditions are further shaped by the company trade union and Chinese government policies. The paper concludes with additional contextualisation indicating the emergence of an alliance of workers, students, scholars and transnational labour movement activists who are campaigning for Chinese workers' rights. Among the most prominent firms in the global supply chain that operates in China is Foxconn, the Taiwanese-owned multinational electronics contract supplier. Foxconn is the trading name for Hon Hai Precision Industry Company and, with a workforce of 1.4 million, it is the largest private sector company in China and one of the world's largest employers...
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...of the indigenous villagers were descendents of a local Yang family. With its geographic proximity to and cultural similarity with Taiwan, XMN was developed at the beginning of the 1990s with the most advanced infrastructure with the aim of attracting Taiwanese investors to set up manufacturing facilities there to take advantage of cheap labour and tax incentives. After 20 years’ of explosive development, XMN has grown to become a bustling modern town hosting over 2,000 manufacturing firms, 80 per cent of which are foreign invested, with a working population of 500,000. Almost 100 per cent of the goods manufactured in XMN are labour intensive products designed abroad and exported to North America and the EU. The products made here include shoes, bags, clothing and small plastic kitchen utensils. In the early phase of development, people of the local oyster farming community filled most of the jobs. However, the local pool of cheap labour soon ran out. Migrant workers, both male and female, now take up over 90 per cent of the manufacturing jobs typically aged between 18 and 25 from the rural areas of Fujian and the less developed provinces of Anhui, Hunan, Jiangxi and Sichuan. BoL was set up as a partnership business...
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...How is the character of Slim important to the novel as a whole? Slim is significant to providing a contrast to the depression and discrimination of the other characters on the ranch. His consistency makes him a tool of comparison and gives him a unique judge-like authority. Slim is important to contextualise other characters on the ranch. Because Slim is describes with such zealous descriptions such as ‘God-like eyes’ he is quickly established as a character with an excellent moral conduct. In contrast, Curley is described as ‘alla time picking scraps with big guys’. With Slim, we can constantly compare characters with him, to intensify their weaknesses. For example, Slim has an ‘authority so great that his word was taken on any subject’, whilst Curley ‘wore high-heeled boots’ to superficially show power. This comparison highlights Curley’s inner insecurity as we see he has to dress for respect whilst this comes to Slim naturally. Slim is also a character assessor on the ranch – his judgement on Lennie is that ‘he’s not mean’. All the time leading up to this, we as readers have probably already arrived to this opinion, but by an authoritive figure like Slim repeating it we can be sure of the innocence of Lennie’s actions. Furthermore, Slim’s power on the ranch makes him a voice of justice throughout the novel. Because justice is so subjective, Slim’s views provide an objective way of evaluating George’s latter decisions in the novel. We are initially surprised when we...
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