Lucrative job in Malaysia? Beware!

At least 134 Indian nationals, lured to Malaysia by false promises, are camping outside the Indian high commission in Kuala Lumpur for the past few days after fleeing from their employers alleging ill treatment.

Clutching suitcases with all their possessions including a few electronic goods, two batches of workers from an electronics firm and 47 persons from a garment factory in Johor Baru have left their employers and want to come back to India.

Another batch of 28 workers from several work places have also fled their employers.

All of them have complained of being cheated by the job agents who lured them with promises of high-paying executive jobs.

In reality, most of them ended up working long hours, up to 18 hours a day, and at a very low pay.

"I was promised an office job and a salary of 1,200 ringett (about 14,000 rupees) but ended up carrying gunny sacks at a supermarket at a salary of 300 ringett,'' Murugan from Tamil Nadu told PTI.

"We have called their agents and are doing our best to ensure that they are sent back to India," an Indian high commission official said.

He said most of them would be able to leave for India by Thursday.

A batch of 47 workers are camping at the Batu Caves, the Hindu shrine where the world's tallest Lord Murugan Statue in located. A sympathetic Chinese family has taken it on themselves to feed the homeless workers camping outside the high commission building.

The Malaysian human resources ministry has said it will discuss with the home affairs ministry the allegations.

Human Resources Minister Fong Chong Onn said his ministry wanted to know the entry procedures of foreign workers when investigating the al legations, the Malay Mail newspaper said.