By MAZWIN NIK ANIS

PUTRAJAYA, MALAYSIA: The retrenchment of foreign workers will be done gradually so as not to affect any sector of the economy, said Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak.

However, the Deputy Prime Minister said that the Government still wanted to see a significant reduction in the employment of foreigners and opportunities given to locals instead.

He said the Government observed that employers preferred to hire foreigners because it was easy to do so.

'While we intend to reduce the number of foreign workers, it will have to be done in stages because we do not want sectors, including manufacturing as well as shop and restaurant owners, to be affected.

'But we also want to see employers giving the jobs to locals. We will get the relevant ministries to take the necessary action to meet this aim,' he told reporters after chairing a Drug Prevention Council meeting yesterday.

Asked on reported plans by a multinational company to lay off some 1,000 workers in Penang, Najib said the Government had not been given a confirmed figure and was monitoring the case closely.

'The Government is looking at what it can do to prevent a major reduction in employment,' he added,

Najib, who is also the Finance Minister,

reiterated that the Government would decide on the right time to launch the second economic stimulus package although there were calls to hasten it to give the economy a further boost.

'At this stage, our aim is to ensure the RM7bil in the first package be spent quickly. We have already transferred RM5bil to the operating ministries and agencies.

'Another RM2bil (S$0.8276bil) is expected to go out by next week. So, the entire amount will be in the hands of those concerned and they have to take immediate action to spend the money,' he said. -The Star