| Author | Chia, Kwang Chye |
| Call Number | AIT Thesis no.HS-81-04 |
| Subject(s) | Housing policy--Malaysia--Penang
|
| Note | A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science, School of Engineering and Technology |
| Publisher | Asian Institute of Technology |
| Abstract | THE HOUSING CRISIS OF THE FEMALE MIGRANT WORKERS: A CASE STUDY OF THE FAYAN LEPAS FREE TRADE ZONE, PENANG, MALAYSIA
The Bayan Lepas Free Trade Zone is one of the assembly bays in the dew international division of labour. Its creation in the earl seventies was in response to the demand for labour by the multi-national corporations for their production bases in the Third World. At that time, the state of Penang was facing an unemployment rate of between 13.8 percent and 15.2 percent. This problem was tackled under the strategy of rural industrialization and rural urbanization.
The proliferation of labour - intensive factories within the Free Trade Zone (FT2) has led to the massive migration of surplus female labour from rural areas (77.6 percent). By December 1979, the estimated total number of female workers in the Bayan Lepas FTZ was 25,383 of whom a large proportion had an agricultural employment background. The direct migration and urbanization of the female migrant workers has led to the increased demand for housing due to the separation of housing from work.
Generally the migrant workers live in three main residential locations - rural (villages), suburb (housing estates) and urban (city). The case studies showed that migrant workers normally changed residence within the same residential location. The housing typology constructed showed that the migrant workers live in five subsystem, namely company housing. dormitory, private hostel, house sharing and room rental. These subsystems operate within the seven types of housing submarkets.
The living conditions of the migrant workers were found to be poor and crowded; with 18 - 30 workers living in one house, as in the case of company housing, while in the case of private hostels, about 56 workers were packed in a bungalow house. The rents paid by these workers ranged from M$ 12 to M$ 22 a month.
Owing to the high turnover rate (5 percent) and the transient nature of the migrant workers, and with house ownership impossible with their low wages (71.9 percent earned between M$ 150 to M$ 199 a month), it is recommended that hostels or self -contained units be constructed by the government or the private sectors near the FTZ. Such hostels can either be rented out to the factories or directly to the workers at a subsidized rate. |
| Year | 1981 |
| Type | Thesis |
| School | School of Engineering and Technology |
| Department | Department of Civil and Infrastucture Engineering (DCIE) |
| Academic Program/FoS | Human Settlement (HS) |
| Chairperson(s) | Angel, Shlomo
|
| Examination Committee(s) | Kammeier, Hans Detlef ; Archer, Raymon W.
|
| Scholarship Donor(s) | Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA) |
| Degree | Thesis (M.Sc.) - Asian Institute of Technology, 1981 |