Following reports of alleged retention of passports of migrant workers and other labor rights violations of workers employed at FGV mills, we reached out to the company to provide a response:

The allegation that 10,000 FGV workers are experiencing delays in their work permit renewal is false and the actual number workers affected has now decreased to 1,992 from 2,101... As the renewal of work permit falls under the authority of the Immigration Department, FGV has had several meetings and continues to work closely with the Immigration Department to address the work permit renewal matter...

Every worker is provided with a locker in their accommodation where they can safely keep their passports and other personal documents... Notwithstanding FGV’s policy, we have discovered an isolated case where the estate management kept workers’ passports pending the settlement of the work permit renewal. In such case, FGV’s management had taken immediate action to return the passports to the affected workers, and to suspend the manager concerned after initiating disciplinary process. Upon completion of their contract with FGV, workers are asked whether or not they want to renew their contract...

... For workers who wish to terminate their contracts and return to their countries of origin before the work permit renewal process is completed, FGV is required to apply for a Check-out Memorandum from the Immigration Department per regulatory requirements before the workers can return to their home countries.

FGV is deploying Suara Kami at scale across all its estates and mills in Malaysia. At the same time, all workers from all FGV estates have access to FGV’s own grievance mechanism... Such channels include the FGV App, FGV Grievance Management Department Careline, Grievance Management Department email and in-person report... The sites referred to in the articles were not part of the initial pilot program during the time of the alleged incidents. FGV has taken necessary actions to address the recent reports and ensure the alleged violations at the mentioned sites are being verified and if corrective action is needed, swift remediation will be carried out through a structured process.