Why do low‐skilled foreign workers have a wage advantage? Evidence from the palm oil plantation sector in Malaysia

Shahiri, Hazrul Izuan; Cheng, Zhiming; Al-Hadi, Azrina Abdullah

doi:10.1002/psp.2404

Cited by 6 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 75 publications

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“…This economic diversification created jobs (World Bank, 2022;Wahab & Hamidi, 2022), while attracting more foreign investment (Solomon et al, 2015). Despite such economic development however some sectors such as agriculture, plantation and construction are still heavily dependent on manual, unskilled and low-paid workers (Hamzah et al, 2020;Arisman & Jaya, 2020;Shahiri et al, 2021). The local workforce is uninterested and unwilling to work jobs they consider "dirty, demeaning and dangerous" (Katmon et al, 2020;Mohd Fateh et al, 2022).…”

Section: Why Focus On Migrant Workers' Lives and Experiences In Malay...mentioning

confidence: 99%

Life experiences and cultural adaptation among migrant workers in Malaysia

Enh,

Wahab,

Azlan

et al. 2024

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This study examines the state of migrants’ cultural adaptation in Malaysia, and how such an adaptation can help build our understanding of migrants’ life and employment experiences in the country. In doing so, this study has adopted a quantitative approach, with a completed survey towards 410 migrant respondents, living and working temporarily in Selangor, Malaysia. A multiple regression analysis finds that the three most significant predictors contributing to the respondents’ cultural adaptation are “positive experiences” (β = .677, p = .000), “closeness” (β = − .107, p = .008), and “social relationships” (β = .095, p = .032). While “positive experiences” and “social relationships” influence the migrant workers’ adaptation positively, the “closeness” predictor on the contrary (negative). Another predictor, “disconnection”, is found to be not statistically significant. The one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) reveals significant differences in the respondents’ cultural adaptation based on such demographic characteristics as age, gender, level of education, nationality, length of employment, and sector of employment. For instance, female migrants are strongly associated with a higher level of “positive experiences” [F(1, 408) = 6.321, p = .013] and “social relationships” [F(1, 408) = 5.634, p = .018], while male migrants tend to rely on cultural proximity (i.e., “closeness”) [F(1, 408) = 6.828, p = .009]. The discussion section highlights attributes such as the gender factor in cultural adaptation, preservation of cultural identities, and creation of migrants’ symbolic places to understand how cultural adaptation intersects with the migrant workers’ daily lives and experiences. This study concludes that as Malaysia’s economy continues to rely on migrant workers, it needs to better understand the workers’ cultural adaptation and their far-reaching impact on their life experiences and employment conditions in the country.

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Section: Why Focus On Migrant Workers' Lives and Experiences In Malay...mentioning

confidence: 99%

Life experiences and cultural adaptation among migrant workers in Malaysia

Enh,

Wahab,

Azlan

et al. 2024

CMS

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“…Balancing the needs of internal and external stakeholders is a crucial aspect of social sustainability and comprehensive sustainability programs can help fulfil the diverse needs of these stakeholders [36,37]. Such programs can contribute to the needs of local communities in palm oil areas, such as education, healthcare, and disaster relief [37,38].…”

Section: Social Sustainability Factor and Workers' Well-beingmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…One worker is typically responsible for cultivating eight hectares of land for field and harvesting operations in oil palm estates. The palm oil industry in Malaysia heavily relies on migrant workers, mainly from Indonesia and Bangladesh, due to a shortage of local workers [38]. Interestingly, refs.…”

Section: Social Sustainability Factor and Workers' Well-beingmentioning

confidence: 99%

Social and Environmental Sustainability, Workers’ Well-Being, and Affective Organizational Commitment in Palm Oil Industries

et al. 2023

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This paper examines the relationship between social and environmental sustainability and workers’ well-being as well as the mediation role of affective organizational commitment for those relationships through social exchange and stakeholder theories. A questionnaire was used to collect data from 112 workers employed in palm oil plantations in Malaysia. Structural equation modeling was then applied to examine the hypotheses. Findings show that social and environmental sustainability positively relates to workers’ well-being. We also found that affective commitment positively mediates social and environmental sustainability relationships with workers’ well-being. Our research findings have practical implications for various stakeholders, such as investors, policymakers, and managers in the palm oil industry. Our results highlight the importance of addressing the well-being of workers and the sustainability factors in palm oil plantations. This study suggests a widened perspective on sustainability factors and well-being which allows professionals to evaluate and enhance sustainability across their operations in a more comprehensive manner.

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“…Such economic diversification paved the way for job creation and income growth (World Bank, 2022), concurrently attracting more foreign investments and development projects implemented in the country (Solomon et al, 2015). Malaysia is also committed to making a transition from an upper-middle income to a high-income economy by 2024 (see Devadas et al, 2020;World Bank, 2022), though some economic sectors including plantation, agriculture and manufacturing are still heavily dependent on manual, unskilled and low-paid workers (see Hamzah et al, 2020;Arisman & Jaya, 2020;Shahiri et al, 2021).…”

Section: Malaysian Labour Market and Its Reliance On The Migrant Work...mentioning

confidence: 99%

COVID-19 pandemic and the changing views of mobility: the case of Nepal–Malaysia migration corridor

Wahab

Hamidi

2022

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For decades, Malaysia has been heavily dependent on unskilled and temporarily contracted migrant workers to fulfil labour gaps in the country. While Malaysia’s economy continues to rely on migrant workers, the COVID-19 pandemic has further aggravated their precarious working and living conditions. In-depth interviews with Nepali migrant workers and community leaders in Malaysia and Nepal in 2021 revealed the incidence of labour rights violations, compounded by the lack of access to justice and effective remedies. Besides, workers are allegedly no longer benefiting from the competitive wages, subsequently limiting the value of their remittance to Nepal. We argue that these incidents serve as the drivers of the changing views of mobility, eventually influencing the emigration environment in which the social construction of migration exists in Nepal. This study examines the migratory realities in the Nepal–Malaysia migration corridor during the pandemic, subsequently contributing to current debate on the aspiration–ability model as a class of research.

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Why do low‐skilled foreign workers have a wage advantage? Evidence from the palm oil plantation sector in Malaysia

Cited by 6 publications

References 75 publications

Life experiences and cultural adaptation among migrant workers in Malaysia

Life experiences and cultural adaptation among migrant workers in Malaysia

Social and Environmental Sustainability, Workers’ Well-Being, and Affective Organizational Commitment in Palm Oil Industries

COVID-19 pandemic and the changing views of mobility: the case of Nepal–Malaysia migration corridor

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