Introduction
Stakeholder analysis identifies and characterizes interested parties and assesses their commitment to an issue. Stakeholder analysis is used in the context of policy formation and project execution, during planning and development, and during implementation, evaluation and review. It is also the process of assessing the company as a system and its possible changes relating to the appropriate parties. This paper will perform an analysis of the migrant workers’ recruitment procedure by an oil palm company operating in Malaysia.
Discussion
Today, Malaysia is one of the largest palm oil producers in the global market. Palm oil has a vast range of applications, including uses in edible and non-edible production contents. The palm oil plantations in Malaysia have a competitive advantage because of a hundred years of experience in developing and selling their products. The sector now employs more than half a million people, many of whom are migrant workers from South or East Asian and African countries (Ford, 2019). Even with the inflow of migrant workers, the industry faces a labour shortage, which is a significant problem in Malaysia nowadays. The analysis lists the main stakeholders in hiring migrants to work in palm oil processing firms and examines their motivation, resource possibilities, and desired benefits (Matalon, 2018).
The country’s government is interested in developing the palm oil industry, which is crucial for the state economy of Malaysia. The government’s motivation, in this case, is to increase production, which can be achieved by expanding the processing sites and the number of workers, including migrant labour (Thacker, 2019). The possibilities of the state, which can be applied to achieve the goal, are mainly legislative. Theoretically, there is the possibility of lowering the tax rate for employers providing the maximum amount of jobs to foreigners and simplifying the border crossing process. The latter point could also help reduce the number of illegal immigrants, which would only increase the final benefit to the state.
Both private and state-run labour agencies are also primarily interested in financial gain since they are usually paid by the employer depending on the hiring amounts. The main difference, except for the affiliation of these stakeholders, is that government agencies are interested in maintaining a balance among the leading competitive companies to avoid downtime and ensure that everyone has enough employees. Private agencies, on the other hand, prefer to work with employers on more profitable terms. Furthermore, all agencies must be officially registered, and their resources include support from the state since the agency not only employs the migrant but also accompanies him throughout the contract and monitors the employer’s compliance with a worker’s rights.
Next in the hierarchy of analysis is the employer. His primary motivation is to reduce costs, which can be achieved by setting the minimum possible wages for employees. The direct tool of the employer in this process is human resources, which includes the management apparatus of the firm, structuring its work (Sarhadi et al., 2021). The desired result for the oil palm plantation owner, in addition to low wages for migrants and other lower-level employees, is a simplified hiring and dismissal process and compliance with all health and safety standards to avoid additional medical expenses.
Correspondingly, without a doubt, one of the most interested parties is the employee, who decided to migrate to a foreign country for a working purpose within the short or long term. Usually, the motivation of the migrant is to earn as much money as possible to help his family at home or to solve other issues. At the same time, the level of health and availability of the job are also motivating factors (Lang, 2021). Opportunities available to the migrant worker include the control of his rights by the agency that employed him and sometimes some public organizations or trade unions.
A trade union, or voluntary social organization, can be formed by the migrant community or local volunteers. They try to protect the interests of foreign workers and rely mainly on the crowd and public support, in rare cases, on state aid.
In total, the most interested parties in this scheme are the owner of the oil palm plantation company and the migrant himself: large numbers of migrants who agree to minimum wages are always within immediate reach (Ford, 2019). It is especially advantageous for the employer since almost no work experience is required, which reduces the requirements for hiring low-level rank-and-file personnel. On the other hand, the migrant is more likely to come from a depressed region with either no jobs or insufficient pay.
Conclusion
Still, many migrants are leaving jobs, which is costly to companies because of the expences needed to recruit new workers. Some companies have resorted to unfair labour practices to retain their workers, which in some cases even include forced labour (Ford, 2019). Because of that, there is a need to increase understanding among employers in the palm oil plantation and production sector of the best practices that create a perfect working environment. Among these practices, the most vital is to fully honour the terms of the contract, keep the promises, and respect the employee. Under these conditions, the migrant will not have to resign or skip work, and the potential risk of forced labour will be avoided.
References
Ford, M. (2019). From migrant to worker: Global unions and temporary labor migration in Asia. Cornell University Press.
Lang, C. (2021). Stakeholder analysis in the context of project management. GRIN Verlag.
Matalon, N. (2018). School vision: A stakeholder analysis. University of Portsmouth.
Sarhadi, M., Hasanzadeh, S., & Hoseini, S. H. (2021). Stakeholder analysis in the feasibility process of projects. Project Management Institute.
Thacker, V. M. (2019). A financial and stakeholder analysis of multi-level marketing companies. Pennsylvania State University.