Malaysia: Indian workers charged high recruitment fees to work for Felda Plantation amid lack of recruitment transparency; incl. co non-response
In January 2025, Sajha Sabal Media reported that Indian workers recruited to work for Felda Plantation have been charged high recruitment fees.
The article alleges these costs have been increased because the agent selected by Felda Plantation to recruit the workers paid Felda officials to secure the tender and control Felda's recruitment process. The article also says the company shifted recruitment to India from Nepal as "transparent hiring" in Nepal would expose corruption and a lack of transparency in the company's recruitment strategy.
It is alleged that [recruitment] agent Anil has strong ties with Felda’s management, which helped him secure the tender and control the recruitment process through six Malaysian agencies...As a result, workers recruited from India are facing higher recruitment fees, making the process costly for them.Sajha Sabal Media
In March, the Business & Human Rights Resource Centre invited Felda Plantation to respond to the article and allegations of recruitment fee charging; to outline how it ensures migrant workers in its operations or supply chain are not charged fees; and to outline how it ensures recruitment fees are borne by the employer in line with the Employer Pays Principle and international standards of ethical recruitment. Felda Plantation did not respond.