By S BIRRUNTHA / pic by ARIF KARTONO

A TOTAL of 888,342 foreign workers in the Federal Territories, Labuan, Penang, Selangor, Negeri Sembilan and Sabah will be undergoing the Covid-19 screening test.

Senior Minister (Security Cluster) Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob said this is to curb the rising number of Covid-19 cases in foreign workers’ dormitories and construction sites.

He added that it was also among the initial action plans and mechanisms carried out by the Ministry of Human Resources (MOHR) after the government decided that all foreign workers in the country should undergo a swab test.

“All foreign workers will be screened using the antigen rapid-test kit and the Social Security Organisation (Socso) will bear the cost of RM60 for each test.

“The MOHR and Socso will coordinate screening tests for foreign workers from various aspects including the number of employees, clinic and laboratory facilities, as well as screening costs,” he said in his daily press conference today.

He added that MOHR will also provide a detailed screening schedule for the foreign workers in Malaysia, which is expected to take about four to six weeks to complete.