17/11/2011 (The Star) - Labour issues in the plantation industry are becoming major problems as palm oil companies try to increase production and efficiency.

Sime Darby Plantation Sdn Bhd vice-president Mohamad Nageeb Ahmad Abdul Wahab said as the industry was facing a shortage of workers, the sector needed to find ways to offer more attractive salaries and benefits.

“Accessibility to the plantations used to be a major problem and yet we still had ample workers.

“Now, it is the opposite as despite having better access to the estates, the locals seem reluctant to work in the industry.

“As a result, we are relying on foreign workers although the wages are getting better now,” he said at the Palm Oil International Congress (PIPOC) 2011 evening forum Bracing Change for a Sustainable Tomorrow.

In 2008, foreign workers made up 74% of the total workforce in the plantation industry and the number had been increasing until now, according to Mohamad Nageeb.

In the next five years, a plantation worker's salary would be adjusted to RM2000 per month, he said.

Mohd Naqeeb said that in the case of Sime Darby Plantation, the group was giving much better incentives to workers, but on the condition that productivity was enhanced.

“We are trying to increase the efficiency of our workers by increasing the ratio from one worker to 9ha to 12ha per worker,” he said.