When?
1 March 2023 (Wednesday)
10:00 am to 11:30 am (Kuala Lumpur Time)
Where?
Seminar Room, Institute of Malaysian & International Studies (IKMAS),
Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM), Bangi, 43600, Selangor
Also available online via Zoom. The zoom link will be provided after completing the RSVP.
Event overview
The Institute of Malaysian and International Studies, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (IKMAS, UKM), together with the Centre for Research in History, Politics and International Affairs (SPHEA, UKM) and UUM-Research Institute for Indonesia, Thailand and Singapore (UUM-ITS) will jointly organise the IKMAS Seminar Series 1/2023 titled “Conducting A Systematic Literature Review on Migrant Workers Policy and Vulnerability to Labour Trafficking in Malaysia.
Objectives
The main objective of this seminar is to share technical knowledge and findings derived from the conduct of a systematic literature review (SLR) on the complex interplay between Malaysia’s policy design and implementation, and migrant workers' vulnerability to labour trafficking.
Target Participants
This seminar aims to attract participation from the academic community working in the field, or intersecting subjects such as labour migration, labour trafficking, human rights and other forms of transnational organised crimes in the region. This includes undergraduate and post-graduate students, university lectures and fellows, and policy analysts from other research agencies. The seminar is also open for other stakeholders, including members of civil society organisations, grassroot communities and international organisations whose works and mandates centred around the elimination of labour trafficking.
Outcome
Increased awareness and technical knowledge among scientific community and graduates on the use of scientific methods such as SLR in view of stimulating evidence-based discourse on labour trafficking and migrant workers’ vulnerability. Further, it is hoped that further research areas and potential collaboration are explored.
Language
The medium of the webinar would be in both English and Malay
Programme Agenda
10.00am - 10.10am - Welcome remarks by Prof Dr Sufian Just, Director, IKMAS
10.10am - 10.15am - An overview of SLR Training for Scholars / Researchers by Dr Michaelle Tauson, Independent Consultant
10.15am - 10.45am - Sharing of the SLR Findings by Dr Andika Wahab, IKMAS, UKM; moderated by Dr Suzylah Sohaimi, UUM-ITS (Research Institute for Indonesia, Thailand, and Singapore).
10.45am - 11.20am - Q&S Session
11.20am - 11.30am - Closing remarks by Prof Dr Zarina Othman, Centre for Research in History, Politics and International Affairs (SPHEA, UKM)
About the Systematic Literature Review
Since 2018, with the first change of the federal government after 60 years of independence, Malaysia has seen notable policy shifts in labour policy. These include amendments of employment and social protection regulations, as well as the strengthening of the national action plan in addressing trafficking in persons and establishment of a dedicated national plan to eliminate forced labour. All of which aimed to further strengthen national efforts to protect the vulnerable migrant workers and strengthen their access to justice and remedies. Despite these efforts, actual cases and allegations of labour trafficking continue to emerge. This suggests complex interactions between such policy shifts and labour trafficking cases in the country.
Research question: Against this backdrop, the conduct of this systematic review aims to unpack the following main research inquiry: how does Malaysia’s policy regarding migrant workers contribute to their vulnerability to labour trafficking? To respond to this main research inquiry: we further asked: (i) what makes migrant workers vulnerable, (ii) do the current regulatory and policy reforms address such vulnerability, and (iii) what hinders Malaysia’s efforts to eliminate migrants’ vulnerability to labour trafficking.
Methodology: This literature review aimed to examine and interpret the existing body of literature, identified through internet searches using two databases, namely, (i) Google Scholar, and (ii) Scopus. A number of key search terms were used in the search strategy, and hits were screened using a list of inclusion criteria. From the total of 3,225 relevant articles identified from both databases, this study included and reviewed only 21 of them.
Findings and Conclusion: Undoubtedly, the past several years have seen positive commitments made by the Government of Malaysia to address labour trafficking and forced labour, including regulatory reforms with the aim to strengthen workers’ protection and access to remedies. However, we found that stronger legislation does not always or necessarily result in increased protection of labour trafficking victims. Effective protection of victims is dependent on a range of complex factors, including effective access to legal representation, remedies, and the ability of frontline enforcement personnel to exercise their duty and to apply humanistic judgement when dealing with vulnerable victims. Further, with an overwhelming lack of public support and migrant agency, there is little incentive for increased protections.
