Malaysia: Investigation reveals migrant workers producing PPE for NHS hospitals exposed to abusive labour practices & Covid-19 risk as employer Top Glove triples profits
โRevealed: Shocking conditions in PPE factories supplying UKโ, 16 June 2020
Staff at Top Glove factories in Malaysia โฆ have provided disturbing evidence about working conditionsโฆ
- Migrant workers paid ยฃ1.08 an hour for gruelling 12-hour shifts, 6 days a week
- โฆ [W]orkers clocking up 111 hours in overtime, in breach of Malaysian lawโฆ
- [I]llegal deductions from workersโ salaries
- Appalling conditions in hostels with up to 24 workers per room
- ... [P]oor social distancing arrangements
- Top Glove reported a 366% increase in quarterly profitsโฆ
The manufacturing giant has been a supplier of gloves to Polyco Healthline, a major contractor to the NHS Supply Chain, which provides PPE to our hospitals.
โฆ [T]he UK government put pressure on the Malaysian Government to increase production of gloves amid chronic shortages in โฆ NHS hospitals and care homes.
Migrant workers from Bangladesh, Myanmar and Nepal are housed in cramped and squalid company-run hostels โฆ [that were] potential breeding ground for โฆ Covid-19โฆ
Many workers have paid extortionate recruitment fees of up to 5,000 US dollars โฆ leaving them in effective debt bondageโฆ
Top Glove declined to address any of the allegations specifically but said the report was inaccurateโฆ
Polyco Healthline ... made clear this order was not for the NHSโฆ