Malaysia: Medical gloves factories accused of forced labour, debt bondage, & passport confiscation
Özet
Date Reported: 9 Ara 2018
Lokasyon: Malezya
Şirketler
NHS Supply Chain - Buyer , Owens & Minor - Buyer , Medline Industries - Buyer , Innovative Healthcare - Buyer , WRP - EmployerDiğer
Not Reported ( İşe alım ajansları ) - RecruiterEtkilenenler
Total individuals affected: Sayı bilinmiyor
Göçmen ve göçmen işçiler: ( 1 - Nepal , İmalat: Genel , Gender not reported ) , Göçmen ve göçmen işçiler: ( 2 - Lokasyon bilinmiyor , İmalat: Genel , Gender not reported )Meseleler
Mandatory overtime , Retention of identity documents , Wage Theft , Restricted mobility , Occupational Health & Safety , Precarious/Unsuitable Living Conditions , Zorla çalıştırma ve modern kölelik , İşe Alım ÜcretleriYanıt
Response sought: Yes, by The Guardian
External link to response: (Find out more)
Action taken: WRP chief executive, Lee Son Hong, denied the allegations as “baseless”, saying the company had “never forced any worker to work 12 hours a day without a day of rest in a week”. “We are appalled that the issue of withholding pay and payment is made once every three months is brought up as we pay monthly wages according to the Malaysian Employment Act,” Lee said. Lee also denied workers were not free to leave the factory premises and they do not confiscate workers’ passports, but kept them in accessible lockers. “Our workers want us to keep their passports for safekeeping,” Lee insisted. An NHS Supply Chain spokesperson said: “NHS Supply Chain takes all allegations of labour abuses in its supply chain very seriously, and we have range of contractual arrangements and initiatives in place to try and prevent such situations arising.”
Source type: News outlet
"Malaysian factories accused of 'forced labour' make rubber gloves for Britain's health service", 9 December 2018
Britain is launching an investigation into medical gloves used by its health service after reports of forced labour, forced overtime, debt bondage, withheld wages and passport confiscation in Malaysian factories where they were made.
...Top Glove and WRP – are allegedly subjecting thousands of migrant workers from Nepal and Bangladesh to exploitative working conditions....
...Top Glove...released a statement..."Lengthy working hours are our main concern and we continue to explore every possible way to address the issue of our workers' excessive daily OT," the company said.
..."Top Glove adopts a zero-tolerance policy with any regard to the abuse of human's rights at all levels," said the statement. "In fact our human/labour rights and health initiatives exceed those of the glove industry average."
WRP chief executive, Lee Son Hong, denied the allegations as "baseless", saying the company had "never forced any worker to work 12 hours a day without a day of rest in a week".
"We are appalled that the issue of withholding pay and payment is made once every three months is brought up as we pay monthly wages according to the Malaysian Employment Act," Lee said.
Lee also denied workers were not free to leave the factory premises and they do not confiscate workers' passports, but kept them in accessible lockers. "Our workers want us to keep their passports for safekeeping," Lee insisted.