SIBU: The Sarawak Maritime Industry Association (Samin) has requested the state government to consider allowing shipyard workers who have completed their vaccination doses be allowed to return to work.
Its president, Dr Renco Yong said it was time the workforce in the industry to be fully restored.
According to him, the pandemic has affected Samin’s business operations as well as marine industry players in the state due to movement restrictions and the need for social distancing imposed to curb the epidemic.
“A large number of shipyards in Sarawak have strictly adhered to the standard operating procedures (SOPs) throughout all phases of the movement control order (MCO).
“Shipyards have worked hard to confine their employees in quarters to minimise their contact with outsiders for their own safety.
“We ask the state government to consider shipyard workers who have received two doses of vaccine to return to work,” Dr Yong said in a statement today (Aug 28).
Apart from that, he said, Samin is confident that the state government will continue to provide support to the maritime and marine industries to ensure that it remains competitive to support the economic growth of the state and the country in particular.
He stressed that the maritime industry is the backbone of the state’s maritime-dependent economy as shipping facilitates the transportation of many local commodities and products to the market and the importation of cargo into the state.
He added the marine industry is also important for the offshore oil and gas industries which are important contributors to the state’s economy.
“In this regard, the continued support of the state government in the form of incentives and good policies is very important in helping industry players face these challenging and difficult times and grow to be competitive nationally and internationally,” he added.
Dr Yong reiterated his hope that the state government would continue to promote the development of the maritime industry despite the changes in the federal government.
“We are also confident that the new government and prime minister will put the country’s economic recovery at the top of their agenda and will quickly revive our economy,” he stressed.
With the on-going pandemic and the adverse effects it has had on the country’s economy, he explained that the government should not delay efforts to revitalise the economy and put in concerted efforts to restore it.
Samin is always committed to working with state and federal government agencies involved in the maritime industry to promote the interests of its members and increase the industry’s contribution to the economy, Dr Yong concluded in the statement.
