KUALA LUMPUR (July 21): The Ministry of Human Resources (MOHR) confirmed that the headquarters of Top Glove Corporation Bhd in Meru, Klang had been raided by enforcers on July 13.
The reason for the raid was because the glove manufacturer had breached movement control order rules, as well as provided cramped quarters for foreign staff, the ministry said in a statement today.
The glove maker was however, cleared of imposing forced labour, the ministry said.
“This caused Top Glove to be compounded by the Ministry of Health Malaysia (MoH) and was issued a compliance notice by the Ministry Housing and Local Government. However, no offense involving elements of forced labor were found,” the ministry said.
The raid was carried out by task forces for the Anti-Trafficking in Persons and Anti-Smuggling of Migrants Act 2007 and the recovery MCO.
Top Glove recently confirmed that the US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) had placed a detention order on disposable gloves manufactured by two of the rubber glove manufacturer's subsidiaries, namely Top Glove Sdn Bhd and TG Medical Sdn Bhd.
The company said there was a possibility this may be related to foreign labour issues and that it was reaching out to the CBP through the glove producer's office in the US, besides the company's customers and consultants, to understand the issue better and work towards a speedy resolution to the matter within an estimated two weeks.
The ministry said it is aware of how the CBP detention order can affect the credibility and image of Malaysia, as well as influence foreign investor confidence, following the allegations of forced labour.
Speaking to reporters after a meeting with representatives from Top Glove and the Malaysian Rubber Glove Manufacturers Association at the Human Resources Ministry today, Saravanan said he will visit Top Glove, as well as invite representatives from the US to see for themselves to prove that the claims were baseless.
"Top Glove will be my top priority, as they are being blamed or accused for no reason, so I will visit (Top Glove) and send invitation to them (US representatives) through Wisma Putra," he was quoted as saying by Bernama.
In a separate statement by Top Glove earlier, the glove maker said it was recently accorded an ‘A’ rating during a social audit by Amfori.
The rating was awarded in a social audit conducted on June 23 to 26, as a result of Top Glove receiving 12 “very good” scores and one “good” score for a total of 13 performance areas assessed during the audit, the company said in a statement today.
Amfori is a leading global business association for open and sustainable trade.
“The recent Amfori audit and earlier third-party audits which garnered good ratings, provide independent verification that there is no element of forced labour in our manufacturing facilities,” said William Yap, general manager of human resources at Top Glove.
Top Glove said it has continuously upheld good labour practices and complied with requirements of labour laws and best practices, while ensuring adequate measures are in place to protect the safety and well-being of its workforce.
“Since January 2019, Top Glove has attended to more than 100 external social audits of its factories, conducted by established international audit firms. In addition, Top Glove has proactively engaged with various organisations with a view of improving Top Glove’s social compliance and performance,” it added.