BANGI, June 5 — The Human Resource Ministry expects the working world in Malaysia to gradually shift to automation in an effort to reduce dependency on foreign workers in the country.

Its minister, M. Kulasegaran said the initiative was to emulate developed countries such as Germany which has been applying the skill of technology in some of its working sectors.

"I was made to understand that the breeding of ducks in Germany is no longer done by humans. One hundred per cent automation, and they can, why can’t we?” he told reporters after a briefing by NIOSH’s management and visited the NIOSH mobile training unit at its headquarters here.

"We are not asking our people to go (change to automation) immediately but reduce gradually because I always said that you don’t fight technology, you go along with technology,” he added.

He also said that the labour force was just one of the driving components in business thus employers need to explore opportunities offered by technology so that they are not left behind.

The ministry will also give time to employers to reduce their foreign workers in stages. — Bernama