THE HEALTH IMPACT OF LABOR RIGHTS VIOLATIONS AGAINST MIGRANT WORKERS IN SELANGOR STATE, MALAYSIA

The overarching goal of this dissertation is to provide a more nuanced understanding of migrant workers’ experiences of occupational injury and illness, their health care needs and the types of support they require to exercise their right to health care under national and international laws. It focuses specifically on migrants (> 18 years of age) from Malaysia’s top source countries (Bangladesh, Indonesia, the Philippines and Nepal) employed in the construction, domestic work, manufacturing, and service work sectors. Research Aims 1 and 2 (Qualitative) utilize data from In-Depth Interviews (n=58) and Focus Group Discussions (n=56). Research Aim 3 (Quantitative) uses data on labor rights violations experienced by more than 1,900 migrant workers assisted by a local non-governmental organization, Tenaganita, between 2009 and 2014. Broadly, the results reveal a complex relationship between occupational injury and illness and systematic violations of the right to a healthy and safety work environment, which extend well beyond the absence of injuries in the workplace. In addition to illustrating the hazardous and exploitative working conditions of migrant workers in Malaysia, this thesis also provides evidence of the Malaysian Government’s failure to uphold its international human rights obligations under multiple international human rights treaties and International Labour Organization Conventions. Without adequate mechanisms in place for monitoring and enforcement of existing labor laws, migrant workers face multiple barriers to redress for violations of their right to “work, to free choice of employment, to just and favorable conditions of work” (UN General Assembly, 1948). As a result, these rights only remain on paper for more than two million migrant workers in Malaysia and beyond