Malaysia to charge second glove maker over poor worker accommodation

Malaysia aims to file 30 charges against glove maker Brightway Holdings and two of its subsidiaries, after raids that found workers' accommodation was not up to legal standards

KUALA LUMPUR (Reuters) - Malaysia aims to file 30 charges against glove maker Brightway Holdings Sdn Bhd and two of its subsidiaries, after raids that found workers' accommodation was not up to legal standards.

The Labour Department, part of the Ministry of Human Resources, conducted a raid on one of the glove-making factory in Kajang district, just outside Kuala Lumpur, last week where they found workers living in cramped, dirty shipping containers stacked behind the premises.

The ministry said in a statement late on Sunday it had found "facilities that do not meet the minimum standard specifications" and the employer did not have a proper certificate of accommodation.

Brightway did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The ministry said it was in the process of completing investigation papers against Brightway and its subsidiaries Biopro and La Glove.

Malaysia is the world's top producer of rubber gloves and its factories have been particularly busy meeting orders since the novel coronavirus pandemic began.

The charges come as Malaysia steps up scrutiny of workers accommodation at glove manufacturing firms after a COVID-19 outbreak at Top Glove Corp, the world's biggest maker of medical gloves.

Malaysia said this month it would file charges against Top Glove because of poor worker accommodation, which it found to be cramped and poorly ventilated.

Malaysia has seen a spike in coronavirus cases since September, with more than 105,000 cases and 452 COVID-19 deaths reported as of Sunday.

 

(Reporting by Mei Mei Chu; Editing by Robert Birsel)