Malaysian labor shortages continue

In March, Furniture/Today spoke with a number of furniture producers showing at the Malaysian International Furniture Fair in Kuala Lumpur. A resounding message among many of the manufacturers was that business was starting to pick up, but in some cases the timing was difficult. 

That's because many were still facing labor shortages because the visas of foreign workers had expired, or were set to expire. This is an issue because many of the jobs in furniture plants, and other lower paying workplaces such as restaurants and hotels, are held by foreign workers from places like Bangladesh and Pakistan. They can work there as long as they have valid visas, but get sent home when the visas expire.

Factories told the paper that while they were still understaffed and thus running under capacity, they expected the situation to correct itself in the coming months as foreign workers renewed their visas and returned to work.

A recent report posted on Malaysian news source The Star Online indicated this hasn't quite happened. A number of factory operators told The Star that they were still facing labor shortages at a time when oversees orders continue to rise.

This is similar to what we've heard taking place in China and Vietnam. There, worker shortages or stoppages occur for different reasons, but mostly due to competition from other industries. As we've already reported, Vietnam also has faced drought-induced power outages that have plants running on erratic schedules.

The question many are asking now is what effect will all this have on the industry. Will lack of inventory and delayed shipments cause consumers to gravitate to other products just as they are starting to open up their wallets? What do you think?