JC3

I heard a rumour that Uncle Albert's Traditional English Fish and Chip restaurant at Straits Quay Marina (Penang) was raided on Thursday night with several illegal workers taken away. It was closed on Friday and still closed today (Saturday). I wonder if the restaurant has been compulsorily shut down?

I think the owners of Uncle Albert's also own the Healy Mac’s Irish pub next door. If the rumour is true, I think it’s odd that such an established company would hire illegal workers.

Anyone know more?

JC3

ex reg

There's also an Uncle Albert's Fish and Chip shop in Ipoh, iirc, so it must be a franchise?
Not so much control over franchises.

bakedbean

I don't know anything but I do remember in the past, maybe 2 or 3 years ago, Healy Macs was also possibly raided and workers taken away. That was the rumour anyhow.

Somebody from another establishment told me that it's damn difficult trying to get staff, so I imagine it must be tempting/necessary to go the illegal route sometimes. I'm not saying it's right but......

On a similar note, I don't know if it's still the case that security guards at condos have to be Malay? A few years ago we had a nice guy on security at our condo. Big lummocks. Just what you need for Security. One day I was practicing a few words of Malay on him, and he grinned and said he spoke English. But, I said, Malay is your native language? No, I'm from Bangladesh, he said

Davita

There must be hundreds, maybe thousands, of illegal Indonesian workers in Malaysia. They do manual labour, like being a maid, that Malays seem incapable or not wishing to perform.
Same as the hispanic workers on the farm in California...but Trump will deport them all...then we'll note the price of fruit in the supermarkets.

SushiFan

Last Friday I saw that a nasi kandar shop at Prima Tanjung (Penang) was raided. A large lorry, black with the word "IMIGRESEN" on the side, was parked, all employees lined up and taken away.
The nasi kandar was operating Saturday, but I have the impression that the staff were different people...

Scratcher

I am sure I have met some Nepalese security guards at a condo in Johor, but it is a long time ago now and I could be wrong. But I have definitely met 3 Nepalese security guards in 3 different branches of Watsons, again in Johor state.

Scratcher

Gunnar45

There are still some legally working Nepalese security guards at condos in Penang.

bakedbean

Ooh blimey. I've never seen a nasi kandar shop in Prima Tanjung. Where is that please? In the food court?
There's a 24 hour Nasi Kandar on the opposite side of Jalan Fettes. Did you mean that one?

bakedbean

It seems to be open. At least, it was when I walked past this morning.

JC3

Under Malaysian law, only Malaysians and Nepalese are allowed to work in the security industry as guards. The Nepalese who work as guards must be ex-servicemen. Both Malaysians and the Nepalese guards must not have criminal records. There's tens of thousands of illegal guards at present and many get arrested by police and immigration.

It looks likely that Malaysia will soon recruit security guards from other countries too.
See: Malaysian security industry, Nepal's monopoly likely to end - southasia.com.au

JC3

SushiFan

Yes, that's the one I mean.

eCdD

Interesting. Almost all our security guards are from Pakistan. And this is a condo that definitely is not doing any illegal things.

WiredTight

I'm guessing... specific country requirements are different when it comes to Armed Security guards.
I've noticed a lot of Help Wanted signs at malls/retail stores/restaurant places. I'm assuming that they are looking for staff that speak multiple languages (English/Malay/Chinese). Is their a shortage of skilled labor, or are the Locals unwilling to work for low wages ???

JC3

If your condominium knowingly uses security guards that are not either Malaysians or Nepalese then it definitely is acting illegally, and so is the security services company your condo employs.

I suggest that you complain in writing to your Management Committee asap (or if you are a tenant, ask your Owner landlord to do so), and ask the MC to verify the passport and work visa of every guard your condo employs, and maintain a file of photocopies for the Owners to view on request.

Employing illegal security guards is extremely poor practice and leads to poor security, not least because if the illegal foreign guard has any difficulties with a local – the local can (and often will) tell him,

“Shut up or I’ll make a Police Report about you, and you’ll be arrested, put in a detention centre and deported”.

What you then get, for example, is people entering your condo whenever they want without being required to register properly or show proper ID to the guards ….because your illegal guards are too scared to enforce the rules, and are unwilling to call the police who may want to check their passport and working visa.

This is a major problem in Malaysia. Security services companies often use illegal foreign security guards in order to pay lower wages, and avoid paying the foreign worker levy, service tax, employees provident fund contributions etc, thereby increasing their profit.

Generally you will find decent condos are paying the security services company the going rate to employ legal security guards, but the security services company is then ripping off the condo by not doing so. Ultimately it is the condo owners and tenants that lose out, especially when the security guards are arrested by the police / immigration, and cannot be immediately replaced. You may find your condo's Management Committee is turning a blind eye to the problem. They shouldn't.

More on this problem, here:

30,000 illegal security guards pose risks | Free Malaysia Today

JC3

columbine

I was told by some locals another reason some security companies or condo management hire illegal security guards is they can report them to the immigration after withholding their salaries for months! Peak reporting season is a month or two before Hari Raya when the immigration people come swooping, catch all and put them in retention centres and the illegals lose out on their owed salaries, plus they need to write home for help to get their release. If their families can't afford to pay they get retained for months until certain groups that work for human trafficking come along to help them. But, the companies or condo managements are not fined for hiring illegals and thus they gain and yet charges the owners for the presumed paid salaries.