Electronics sector wired up again

The electronics and electrical (E&E) sector in Malaysia, affected by the global economic downturn late last year, is rehiring its workforce again as fresh orders in the Asia Pacific region especially from China started to pick up.

The scenario in the electronics industry today appears to be the reverse of that in the fourth quarter 2008 and first quarter 2009 when many multinational corporations (MNCs) in the country imposed hiring freeze, implemented voluntary separation schemes, four-day work weeks, and closed facilities.

Intel Technology for example closed two of its facilities at the Bayan Lepas plant, while Jabil Circuit offered VSS to more than 200 of its 5,000-odd employees based in Penang and implemented a four-day work week schedule.

Malaysian-American Electronics Industry (MAEI) chairman Datuk Wong Siew Hai on Friday confirmed that members of MAEI’s grouping of 17 semiconductor and non-semiconductor companies had started rehiring in the second half this year.

He however cautioned that most of the rehiring were undertaken in “a very limited and selective” manner.

For now, he said MAEI members were still cautious on the export sales outlook for 2009 that strongly depend on the pace of the global economic recovery.

Wong declined to comment on the recent rate of retrenchment in the country’s E&E industry.

However, he said: “I am happy to report that most companies are now returning to normal working hours due to the renewed pick-up in orders from China and hopefully from the US soon.”

In 2008, the MAEI’s market share to Malaysia’s total exports of E&E stood at 30% worth RM255.3bil compared with RM266.4bil in 2007.

- THE STAR