Local companies of all sizes need to accelerate automation in their operations and production as the future supply of foreign workers is unlikely to match current levels, Investment, Trade and Industry Minister Datuk Seri Johari Abdul Ghani said.
He said businesses, including micro, small and medium-sized companies, need to understand the importance of adopting automation as soon as possible to reduce reliance on foreign labour.
“We want many companies, regardless of size, whether micro, small or medium, to understand how important it is to bring automation into operations and production as soon as possible,” he told reporters after officiating the Women, Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Digital Economy Forum today.
Johari said foreign workers were originally brought in to undertake dirty, dangerous and difficult (3D) jobs rather than replace Malaysian workers.
“We have to be fair to local workers because their lives are not the same as foreign workers’. Our people have many family members who need to be supported here,” he said.
He also urged employers who claim Malaysians are unwilling to work to reconsider the wages and value offered for such jobs.
“If they are offered the minimum wage, maybe they do not want it as they don’t see the economic value. Our people are willing to go to Singapore to work because there is economic value,” he said.
The forum brought together government, academia, industry and entrepreneurship perspectives on the role of women in the AI era and how businesses and individuals can create and own value as AI increasingly shapes the economy.
