Tuesday, January 14, 2014

Workers urge employer to get sick worker healthcare - employer calls police - worker dies - media call it 'Riot"?

worker's condition worsening - other workers urge employer to take sick worker for medical treatment - employer calls police? Why not ambulance? - worker dies - police comes and arrest workers??? Media (that is BERNAMA) calls it a 'Riot'? ...and of course, the media report does not even name the factory...which really should be named and investigated given that this is not the 1st case but rather the 3rd death... and this employer apparently failed to effectively deal with the workers' grievance  - maybe the employer should be charged under the Penal Code for causing death... Why could the workers themselves rush to hospital - maybe the employer was holding on to the original passport/visa and Malaysian hospitals will not treat unless the foreign worker comes with the relevant documents and pay the required fees? 

A case that really needs to be looked into - and media, please stop criminalizing all worker legitimate actions...



Nepalese workers arrested for attempting to instigate riot, say cops
January 12, 2014

ALOR SETAR, Jan 12 — A group of Nepalese factory workers in Pokok Sena near here tried to stage a riot last night after getting furious with their employer who allegedly ignored one of their colleagues who was having difficulty breathing.

In the 9pm incident, between 100 and 200 workers gathered in front of the employer’s house, demanding him to take immediate action to help the worker whose breathlessness condition was worsening at the workers’ hostel.

Fearing something untoward might happen, the employer refused to come out to meet the workers, but instead alerted the police.

The Nepalese workers were getting more furious after realising that their friend had died of shortness of breath and were blaming it on the employer.

However, a team of policemen who arrived at the scene about 20 minutes later, managed to disperse the workers.
Kota Setar Public Order and Traffic chief DSP Mat Akhir Jaafar, when met at the scene, said three of the workers, believed to be their leaders, were arrested.

“Initial investigation found that the reason the workers acted that way was because there have been three cases of sudden deaths involving the factory workers at the hostel and that the employer did nothing to find out why,” he said.

He said police would investigate further into the case.

The body of the dead worker was taken to Sultanah Bahiyah Hospital for post mortem. — Bernama - Malay Mail. 12/1/2014,
Nepalese workers arrested for attempting to instigate riot, say cops

This reminds us of 

Remembering the JCY's 5,000 Workers Protest 2010 - maybe the biggest workers' protest in Malaysia for many years

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