An Overview of the Growth of Samsung Group Malaysia

Nganyin Lai

 

Abstract

 

The electronics and electrical (E&E) industry in Malaysia has grown to become a prime industry, accounting for 6 percent of the country’s gross national income and 41 per cent of its total exports. Key players in the electronics industry are multinational corporations (MNCs) which exercise great influence over the organization of production, labour practices, and development trends of the industry both locally and globally. Labour laws and regulations remain biased in favour of employers. Additionally, MNCs operating in the country have kept labour costs low by employing greater percentage migrant workers who are paid much less than Malaysian nationals. While the industry registers hundreds of billions of ringgit in terms of value of output, the workers are still being denied benefits in spite of the huge profits these companies have been making year after year. This report attempts to provide insights into these aspects of the E&E industry by taking the Samsung Group in Malaysia as a case study. It discusses the expansion of Samsung Malaysia, investigates the organising of production at one of its subsidiaries, and provides a glimpse into the working conditions of the workers. 

 

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