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KUALA LUMPUR: Glove maker Brightway Holdings Bhd has denied that hundreds of its workers are living in metal containers in conditions described by a minister as modern slavery.
The company confirmed with the Reuters news agency that a raid had taken place today on its LA Glove subsidiary, but denied that its workers lived in containers and said it had fewer workers than the number given by the Labor Department.
Human Resources Minister M Saravanan said living conditions in the factory in Kajang they were the worst he had ever seen. “This looks like modern slavery,” he told Astro Awani.
The Selangor Health Department issued a seven-day closure notice to the factory for failing to comply with Covid-19 preventive measures.
A multi-agency raid today found 781 workers living behind the factory in two stacked three-story high container blocks, which officials said was a violation of a minimum housing standards law.
Reuters quoted Brightway’s director of human resources, Alice Michael, as saying that the workers “lived in a three-story building near the factory but off limits” as the company did not want employees to be exposed to Covid-19.
“There are only 450 workers, many of whom have shelters further afield, but they were brought into this building temporarily,” he said.
A Labor Department official told the FMT that the factory violated the Streets, Drainage and Construction Law by erecting a building (the containers) without the permission of the Kajang City Council. The company had not requested approval to convert the containers into accommodation, he said.
Brightway said it has been instructed to meet with the human resources ministry tomorrow.
The company said the factory closure was due to workers not wearing the masks correctly and social distancing requirements were not met. He said he would take steps to rectify the situation in order to revoke the closure order.
