The groups said even with the freeze announced by Human Resources Minister V. Sivakumar on March 19, the flow of foreign workers entering the country would likely remain the same due to issues outside of the ministry's control.
Federation of Malaysian Manufacturers president Tan Sri Soh Thian Lai said that issues in source countries and reduced demand could hamper attempts to bring in workers immediately. He added that due to a recent slowdown in demand, employers would also have less urgency to bring in their workers immediately.
"It will also intensify the already challenging business environment for our industries at the moment as projections of a slower global growth could continue to impact the growth of our industries and the economy at large," he said in a statement on Monday .