Employee Welfare A Company Priority

KUALA LUMPUR, MALAYSIA - MediaOutReach - 5 February 2021 - The Joinland Group, a diversified Malaysian conglomerate of varied businessinterests, led by Dato'Sri Thomas Hah Tiing Siu, has been adjustingits strategies as the COVID-19 pandemic has progressed, putting a major focuson maintaining growth, employment and protecting the health of its employees.

COVID-19 did pose many difficulties for thebusiness, particularly in relation to the company's swiftlet farming operationsin Sarawak. Interstate travel restrictions reduced the company's oversightcapability and limited opportunities for onsite training which are importantcontributors to productivity. Alongside this, the general reduction in tourismled to a sharp decline in the price of edible bird nests and this also impactedrevenues.

While the COVID-19 pandemic did impact Joinlandnegatively in 2020, the company has made a special effort to protect the jobsof its employees by diversifying into new areas of activity to maintain thegrowth of the company. This has included the development of new sustainable agriculturalprojects which will be coming on stream in 2021 and which offer a lot of excitingpotential for future growth and job opportunities for locals in Sarawak.

As a result of these adaptions, Joinland has beenable to maintain its workforce with no retrenchments or pay cuts throughout thepandemic period. In addition, to working hard to protect and even growemployment throughout its many businesses, the company has also done its bit toprotect its workers from the illness.

Steps taken include the provision of plentiful suppliesof PPE, the enforcement of social distancing in the workplace, regularsanitisations of facilities, routine staff health checks and the ongoingeducation of employees to ensure they are constantly informed and reminded ofbest practices to keep everyone safe and reduce risk to the minimum. As aresult of these activities, Joinland is pleased to report that, to the best ofits knowledge, none of its employees in Malaysia, China, Singapore, Hong Kongor Papua New Guinea have tested positive for the virus so far, although thecompany does not intend to let its guard down and continues to enhance itssafety protocols.

Dato' Sri Thomas Hah TiingSiu, the founder of Joinland, said, "We are committed to the welfare of our employeesand they are a key factor in every decision we make. We are delighted that wehave been able to avoid any staff retrenchments despite the upheavals caused byCOVID and are thankful that so far, none of our staff have been directlyimpacted by COVID from a health perspective. We sincerely hope that we can maintainthose trends in 2021. Economically, we do not expect things to return torelative normality within one, two or even three years and as such are planningahead, diversifying the company still further and identifying sustainable newrevenue streams that will allow us to thrive despite the pandemic situation."

Apartfrom its new agricultural project, the Joinland Group, which is headquartered in Miri, Sarawak, is already involved in manydifferent businesses including a major agro-forestry project on the island ofNew Hanover in Papua New Guinea, swiftlet farming in Sarawak, real-estatemanagement (including developments in Malaysia, Singapore and China) andsubstantial investments in seven other businesses in Malaysia, Singapore, Chinaand New Zealand.

Sources:

*          https://www.freshplaza.com/article/9225741/ministry-of-agriculture-to-intensify-efforts-to-find-land-for-pineapple-cultivation-in-malaysia/

**https://www.thestar.com.my/business/business-news/2019/11/27/china-a-new-market-for-malaysias-pineapples

***https://www.theedgemarkets.com/article/agriculture-coconut-revival

About Joinland Group

The Joinland Group is a diversified Malaysian conglomerate includingproperty, plantation, forestry and agricultural management, insurance andshipping businesses, to name a few. The company operates businesses andinvestments in many markets including Malaysia, Singapore, Brunei, Australia,Papua New Guinea, China and New Zealand, among others.

The company was founded by Dato' Sri Thomas Hah Tiing Siu, a self-made entrepreneur who started out in the cold storage business. In2013 he was awarded the honorary title of Dato' Sri by the Sultan of Pahang(Malaysia) in recognition of his management skills and business acumen inbuilding the Joinland Group.

Formore information on the Joinland Group please visit www.joinlandgroup.com.my