COVID-19 pandemic and the changing views of mobility: The case of Nepal-Malaysia migration corridor
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
11-1-2022
Abstract
For decades, Malaysia has been heavily dependent on unskilled and temporarily contracted migrant workers to fulfil labour gaps in the country. While Malaysia's economy continues to rely on migrant workers, the COVID-19 pandemic has further aggravated their precarious working and living conditions. In-depth interviews with Nepali migrant workers and community leaders in Malaysia and Nepal in 2021 revealed the incidence of labour rights violations, compounded by the lack of access to justice and effective remedies. Besides, workers are allegedly no longer benefiting from the competitive wages, subsequently limiting the value of their remittance to Nepal. We argue that these incidents serve as the drivers of the changing views of mobility, eventually influencing the emigration environment in which the social construction of migration exists in Nepal. This study examines the migratory realities in the Nepal-Malaysia migration corridor during the pandemic, subsequently contributing to current debate on the aspiration-ability model as a class of research.
Keywords
COVID-19, Mobility, Migrant workers, Aspiration-ability model
Divisions
SocialAdministrationJustice
Funders
Fundamental Research Grant Scheme (FRGS) FRGS/1/2021/SS0/UKM/02/4
Publication Title
Comparative Migration Studies
Volume
10
Issue
1
Publisher
SPRINGERNATURE
Publisher Location
CAMPUS, 4 CRINAN ST, LONDON, N1 9XW, ENGLAND