Home Affairs Minister Visits Labour Dept
By Narissa Noor

Bandar Seri Begawan - The Minister of Home Affairs made a working visit to the Labour Department early yesterday morning to ascertain the problem areas faced by the department and to further discuss the development and guidelines, as well as to observe the core business implemented by the department.

Pehin Orang Kaya Johan Pahlawan Dato Seri Setia Awang Hj Adanan bin Begawan Pehin Siraj a Khatib Dato Seri Setia Awang Hj Mohd Yusof used the visit to meet with officers and staff of the department and familiarise himself with the department's tasks and developments.

Also present during the visit were the Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Home Affairs Hj Awang Mohd Mandi bin Pehin Orang Kaya Digadong Seri Diraja Dato Laila Utama Hj Awang Abdul Rahman and other officers from the ministry.

In an interview with the minister, he said that the visit was aimed at taking a closer look on the core business of the Labour Department, specifically on the applications submitted by the public to obtain new quotas to employ foreign workers or those requesting for more.

By doing so, the minister hoped to raise the effectiveness and efficiency of services in the department for the benefit of the public, and to raise the department's image as an agency with the capability to advance.

The minister discussed the department's current progress and the efforts taken to improve the department, as well as the problems related to its managing committee.

During the working visit, Pehin Dato Awang Hj Adanan inspected various units, including the Foreign Workers Section, Labour Standard Section, International Relations Division, Local Employment Service Section, Labour Enforcement, Complaints Division, Filing Unit, Research and Statistics Section, and Finance and Administration Section.

Besides administering and enforcing the Labour Acts, the Labour Department is also assigned to protect the rights of every worker in the country, be it local or foreigner.

One important task by this department is to assist local jobseekers in finding employment. The Local Employment Service Section was set up to register local jobs and assists them to find suitable positions in both public and private sectors.

Dyg Nut-tit, who was one of the jobseekers looking at the vacancies posted by the section, said that it is an invaluable service for them, especially jobseekers, in finding employment.

She admitted that competition is tough, but on the other hand, praised the efforts to centralise the information about job vacancies.

This was shared by another local jobseeker, Liza, who was also going over the vacancies available yesterday. She said that the department, in the past, has helped her get temporary employment and at the moment is trying to get a permanent job.

As of December 2007, a total of 6,812 jobseekers from all over the country have applied at this section.

To ensure that the locals have opportunities in finding jobs, the Labour Department has imposed a freeze on 14 types of jobs where locals should be given priority.

Some of the jobs are secretaries, checkers, clerks, security, telephone operators, receptionists, account clerks, storekeepers, cashiers, cleaners, Class III, IV and V drivers, and bookkeepers.

Pehin Dato Awang Hj Adanan also spoke to a few members of the public at the counters of several of the department's section and looked at improvements that can be made further.

After completing his tour of the department, the minister was briefed in the conference room on the various developments, the problems faced by the department and their plans for advancement.

The briefing was presented by the department's division heads and attended by the Acting Commissioner of Labour, Dayang Hjh Rosliah bte Hj Hasbullah, and the Deputy Commissioner of Labour, Awang Ramlee bin Hj Jamudin.

During the briefing, the minister presented his own views emphasising on the need to improve information sharing and customer service, and step up efforts in assisting more job-seeking locals. -- Courtesy of Borneo Bulletin

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