KUALA LUMPUR (Jan 25): Top Glove Corp Bhd gave assurance today that it views the safety and well-being of all employees as paramount in its ongoing expansion plans.

The glove maker said this in response to Senior Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob's comments last Friday that while the government appreciated Top Glove's initiative to hire 9,000 Malaysians in 2021, it also wanted the company to emphasise on the safety and well-being of the employees.

"We thank the honourable minister, Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri, for his words of encouragement, and wish to assure him and all our internal and external stakeholders that Top Glove does view the safety and well-being of our workforce as of utmost importance.

"As the employer of choice for some 21,000 employees, we understand that our workforce is the backbone of the company, and our success is thanks to their commitment and efforts," Top Glove said in a statement today.

The world's largest manufacturer of gloves said over the past three years, it has been embarking on increased automation across its operations towards increasing efficiency in terms of production, quality and cost, minimising human error and reducing dependency on manual labour. The company is also filling the employment gaps from the Malaysian talent pool.

Last Friday, Top Glove announced a year-long recruitment campaign which would provide employment to over 9,000 Malaysians as it met increased global demand for its medical gloves and other personal protective equipment.

Towards this, Top Glove said it would hold a virtual career fair every third Saturday of the month throughout 2021 with the first fair having taken place on Jan 23, and the next scheduled for Feb 20.

Top Glove said its virtual career fairs are expected to fill positions across all levels from executive to non-executive roles in its offices and factories in various states in Malaysia.

These comprise 4,000 positions for local workers, 2,300 positions for university and tech vocational fresh graduates, 2,000 interns and trainees and 700 experienced Malaysian staff with tertiary qualifications.

In 2020, the company hired a total of 6,599 Malaysians, including 1,654 interns.