KL tells firms insure foreigners

KL tells firms insure foreigners

KUALA LUMPUR (DPA): Malaysian labor authorities have warned employers to insure foreign workers against accidents or face court action and possible jail terms, a news report said yesterday.

Human Resources Minister Lim Ah Lek said he was "appalled" to learn that 700,000 legal foreign workers as well as most illegal foreign laborers were uninsured despite a law passed two years ago.

Under the law, errant bosses will be fined 20,000 ringgit (US$5,000) or jailed for two years, and barred from hiring foreign workers, the New Straits Times reported.

Lim said employers, not the government, were responsible for the welfare of their workers.