Breaking point: The mental health crisis facing migrant workers [WATCH]

KUALA LUMPUR: In six years, 344 Nepali migrant workers have taken their own lives, raising serious concerns over foreign workers’ mental health.

Alarm bells were first raised in 2021 when the Human Rights Commission of Malaysia (Suhakam) revealed suicide as a leading cause of death among Nepali migrants.

Nearly five years on, human rights advocates say the underlying pressures, including working and living conditions, persist and may be worsening.

Pusat Komas director and former Suhakam commissioner Jerald Joseph, who first highlighted the findings, said input from the Nepali embassy revealed pressures and tensions that drove workers to take their own lives.

This led to Suhakam signing a memorandum of understanding with its Nepali counterpart, allowing returning workers to lodge complaints about their time in Malaysia.

Workers cited long hours, debt from recruitment fees, cramped and unsanitary living conditions, fear of termination leading to undocumented status and a lack of proper complaint channels as key issues.

Under the Employment Act, regular working hours cannot exceed eight hours a day. Total working hours, including overtime, are capped at 12 hours a day ­— the standard shift length for security guards.

“All this adds up. It would not be surprising if the stress and pressure push some to take their own lives,” he said.

For context, the 344 Nepali workers who took their own lives over a six-year period were among the 2,214 workers from the country who died here.

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While the spotlight in 2021 was on Nepali workers, Jerald said such pressures affected migrant communities across the board.

“A new Bangladeshi worker from a village may be shocked by how different Malaysia is. Indonesian workers may cope better due to language familiarity, but this is not unique to Nepali workers.

“Anyone living abroad for long periods without a support system can either grow stronger or break under the strain,” he said.

He added that migrant workers also face xenophobia.

“The migrant community is often looked down upon. Just look at the comments online.”

On mental health support, Jerald said the situation was dire, with services for migrants still limited.

Suhakam said Malaysia’s healthcare system remains largely inaccessible to migrants facing job loss and psychological distress.

Barriers such as cost, language differences and fear of immigration consequences prevent many in crisis from seeking help.

“Availability must be matched with accessibility, particularly for vulnerable and marginalised groups,” Suhakam said.

The commission added that mental health is not adequately integrated into labour protections, and the Covid-19 pandemic exposed major gaps in existing frameworks.

Suhakam said Malaysia could adopt international best practices, including integrating mental health into labour and occupational safety frameworks, providing multilingual helplines and expanding community-based outreach programmes.

It also proposed requiring employers to ensure access to counselling, strengthening the regulation of recruitment practices to reduce debt-related stress and establishing accessible grievance mechanisms that workers can use without fear of retaliation.

© New Straits Times Press (M) Bhd

المصدر: New Straits Times