Top Glove

Top Glove Corporation Berhad is a Malaysian rubber glove manufacturer who also specialises in face masks, condoms, dental dams, and other products.[1] The company owns and operates 47 manufacturing facilities in Malaysia, Thailand, China, and Vietnam. It also has marketing offices in these countries (except Vietnam) as well as the United States, Germany, and Brazil.[2]

Top Glove Corporation Bhd
TypePublicly traded company
MYX: 7113
ISINMYL7113OO003
IndustryRubber
Founded1991
FounderLim Wee-Chai
HeadquartersSetia Alam, Malaysia
Number of locations
47 (as at November 2020)
Key people
Tan Sri Dr Lim Wee-Chai, Executive Chairman

Dato Lee Kim Meow, Managing Director

Lim Cheong Guan, Executive Director
ProductsRubber gloves
Number of employees
21,000
Websitewww.topglove.com

History

The company was founded in Malaysia in 1991 by Tan Sri Dr Lim Wee Chai, with one production line and staff comprising 100 people. Wee Chai's parents are rubber plantation owners and traders. Top Glove has since become the world's largest manufacturer of gloves, commanding 26% of the world market share.[3][4]

Top Glove was listed on the Kuala Lumpur Stock Exchange (now) Bursa Malaysia) in August 2001.[5] In the span of a year, Top Glove Corporation Bhd's listing was promoted from the Second Board to the Main Board on May 16, 2002.[6][7]

On 28 June 2016, Top Glove was also listed at No.9[8] on the Mainboard of the Singapore Exchange.[7][9]

In 2017, Top Glove announced that they would launch a new condom business in 2018 with a RM30 million (US$7 million) investment.[10]

At 19 March 2020, Top Glove had a shareholder fund of RM2.6 billion[11] and an annual turnover of about RM2.4 billion.

As of 30 November 2020, Top Glove has 750 production lines, 47 factories,[12] 195 countries of export and 2,000 customers.[11]

In April 2018, Top Glove concluded its acquisition of leading surgical glovemaker, Aspion Sdn Bhd, its biggest M&A to date, which would see Top Glove emerging as the world's largest surgical glove manufacturer.[13]

In April 2020, the company announced that it would manufacture face masks due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[14] Due to rising demand for protective gear in response to COVID-19, Top Glove's profits had risen by 400% by mid-December 2020, with the company announcing a 20-times increase in quarterly net profit to RM 2.4 billion (US$590 million)[15]

In November 2020, the company donated a total of RM185 million to the Government's COVID-19 fund set up to battle the pandemic.[16] At the same time, a COVID-19 cluster was emerging in from its plant in Meru which resulted to temporary closing of 28 factories by stages in that area.[17]

Entrance to Top Glove Tower

Controversies

Labour controversies

In December 2018, The Guardian reported that migrant workers were being allegedly subjected to forced labour, forced overtime, debt bondage, withheld wages and passport confiscation.[18] The company has denied these allegations and claimed that it has since improved its labour initiatives, which include the introduction of a zero cost recruitment policy.[19]

An investigation by Channel 4 News in June 2020 found that staff were living in cramped conditions, paid £1.08 an hour, forced to work overtime to meet the demand for gloves during the COVID-19 pandemic, and could not adequately practice social distancing despite the company claiming appropriate measures were taken.[20] Workers, many of whom were migrants, also claimed they paid up to $5000 in recruitment fees to secure employment, leaving them in debt bondage.[21] Top Glove did not address any specific claims but called the investigation inaccurate.[22]

US Customs product sanction and detention

On 15 July 2020, the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) placed a detention order on imports of products made by subsidiaries of Top Glove for labour issues over debt bondage of its foreign workers and poor housing.[23][24] In response, Top Glove pledged to improve housing for their workers and remove the debt bondage of its workers in an effort to lift the ban.[25][26]

COVID-19 pandemic

In mid-November 2020, several COVID-19 cases were detected in one of the Top Glove dormitories in Klang which has lead to an enhanced movement control order being implemented in the surrounding area.[27] By 27 November 2020, more than 4000 cases were linked to the Top Glove dormitories cluster.[28] On 30 November, the EMCO at Top Glove's dormitories across Malaysia was extended until 14 December.[29] This has forced the company to temporarily close a total of 28 factories by stages in the area.[30]

According to a Malay Mail report published on 13 December 2020, several South Asian migrant workers had told the Agence France-Press about "appalling" living conditions including cramped dormitories housing 25 people. These overcrowded conditions had contributed to the spread of COVID-19 within 28 of Top Glove's 41 factories. Malaysian authorities are planning legal action against the company for poor worker accommodation, which could result in heavy fines. In response to criticism and publicity, Top Glove announced plans to purchase more workers' accommodation and to build "mega-hostels" equipped with modern amenities that can house 7,300 people.[15] The same day, it was reported that Top Glove had fired a whistleblowing Nepalese migrant worker named Yubaraj Khadka for sharing photos of overcrowded working conditions, which were later picked up by Reuters.[31]

On 23 December 2020, Top Glove announced that it would no longer penalise whistleblowers and would establish three helplines for workers’ complaints.[32]

References
  1. "Top Glove Products - Overview". Top Glove. Retrieved 8 August 2020.
  2. "Our Locations". Top Glove. Retrieved 8 August 2020.
  3. "#1613 Lim Wee Chai". Forbes. Retrieved 17 June 2020.
  4. "About Us". Top Glove Malaysia. Archived from the original on 22 December 2019. Retrieved 8 August 2020.
  5. "Announcement details". Bursa Malaysia. 8 August 2001. Retrieved 8 August 2020.
  6. "TOPGLOV - Transfer from the Second Board to the Main Board of the Kuala Lumpur Stock Exchange". Bursa Malaysia. 13 May 2002. Retrieved 8 August 2020.
  7. "Other Corporate Information". Top Glove. Retrieved 8 August 2020.
  8. Chun Wai, Wai (26 July 2020). "Billionaire behind Top Glove is going places no Malaysian tycoons have". South China Morning Post. Retrieved 8 August 2020.
  9. "Top Glove, Riverstone & UG Healthcare Report Quarterly Earnings". SGX. 4 June 2020. Retrieved 8 August 2020.
  10. "Top Glove to kick off condom business next year". South China Morning Post. Retrieved 22 October 2018.
  11. "Corporate Profile". Top Glove. 8 August 2020. Archived from the original on 8 August 2020. Retrieved 8 August 2020.
  12. "Top Glove now third largest stock on Bursa Malaysia". Malay Mail. 13 July 2020. Retrieved 8 August 2020.
  13. "Not all gloom and doom for Top Glove". The Star. 14 July 2018. Archived from the original on 28 October 2018. Retrieved 10 April 2020.
  14. Regencia, Ted; Stepansky, Joseph (10 April 2020). "Coronavirus deaths rise but signs of progress seen: Live updates". Al Jazeera. Retrieved 10 April 2020.
  15. "'Profits over people': Covid-19 overruns Top Glove factories as workers speak of appalling accommodations". Malay Mail. 13 December 2020. Archived from the original on 13 December 2020. Retrieved 13 December 2020.
  16. "Kossan, Top Glove, Hartalega and Supermax confirm donations to Govt's RM400 mil COVID-19 fund". The Edge Markets. 6 November 2020. Retrieved 19 November 2020.
  17. "Top Glove confirms temporary closing of 28 factories in Meru by stages due to upsurge in Covid-19 cases". The Edge Markets. 23 November 2020. Retrieved 30 November 2020.
  18. Ellis-Petersen, Hannah (9 December 2018). "NHS rubber gloves made in Malaysian factories linked with forced labour". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 7 April 2020. Retrieved 10 April 2020.
  19. Chua, Gigi (14 December 2018). "Top Glove denies forced labour allegations". The Edge. Archived from the original on 28 April 2019. Retrieved 10 April 2020.
  20. "Coronavirus hits Malaysian rubber glove giant". Catholic News in Asia | LiCAS.news | Licas News. 14 December 2020. Retrieved 17 December 2020.
  21. Channel 4 News Investigations Team (16 June 2020). "Revealed: Shocking conditions in PPE factories supplying UK". Channel 4. Retrieved 19 June 2020.
  22. FMT Reporters (18 June 2020). "FMT: Top Glove denies worker exploitation claims in British TV Report". FMT. Retrieved 19 June 2020.
  23. "Withhold Release Orders and Findings". U.S. Customs & Border Protection. Retrieved 16 August 2020.
  24. "Amid virus crisis, U.S. bars imports of Malaysia's Top Glove over labour issues". Reuters. 16 July 2020. Retrieved 15 August 2020.
  25. "Racing to reverse US ban, Top Glove improves workers' housing". The Edge Markets. 11 August 2020. Retrieved 15 August 2020.
  26. "Top Glove still resolving US ban, remediation fee now at RM53m". The Edge Markets. 10 August 2020. Retrieved 15 August 2020.
  27. "Top Glove dormitories in Klang under EMCO from Nov 17 to 30, says Ismail Sabri". The Edge Markets. 16 November 2020. Archived from the original on 16 November 2020. Retrieved 19 November 2020.
  28. Thomas, Jason (27 November 2020). "Top Glove says 'in the process' of closing Meru factories". Free Malaysia Today. Archived from the original on 27 November 2020. Retrieved 30 November 2020.
  29. Bedi, Rashvinjeet (30 November 2020). "EMCO at Top Glove dormitories in Klang extended another 14 days (updated)". The Star. Archived from the original on 30 November 2020. Retrieved 30 November 2020.
  30. Adilla, Farah (25 November 2020). "Top Glove tumbles on plant closure, move may push glove prices higher | New Straits Times". NST Online. Retrieved 1 December 2020.
  31. "Top Glove fired whistleblower before Covid-19 outbreak". Malay Mail. 13 December 2020. Archived from the original on 13 December 2020. Retrieved 13 December 2020.
  32. "Top Glove says will no longer fire whistleblowers, opens helplines for workers". The Star. 23 December 2020. Archived from the original on 23 December 2020. Retrieved 23 December 2020.
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