JS-SEZ Positioned As Johor’s Answer To Brain Drain
The development of the Johor-Singapore Special Economic Zone (JS-SEZ) is emerging as a key strategy by the Johor government to tackle brain drain by creating a high-income employment ecosystem capable of competing with Singapore’s labour market.
Johor chief executive officer Natazha Hariss said the state is now prioritising high-impact investments that not only bring in capital but also offer premium salaries to local workers under Invest Johor’s new corporate mandate.
He acknowledged that the strong Singapore dollar — currently valued between RM3.30 and RM3.40 — remains a major pull factor for Johor workers, but said the JS-SEZ could help narrow the quality-of-life gap.
“We aspire to provide a dignified alternative. We do not want the people of Johor to remain trapped in the routine of waking up at 4am to queue at the Johor Causeway in search of better income,” he said.
Natazha said Johor’s lower operating costs allow investors to offer more competitive remuneration packages while giving workers better work-life balance without the need for daily cross-border commutes.
To strengthen local talent retention, Johor is mobilising the Johor Talent Development Council (JTDC) to ensure nearly 50,000 SPM school leavers and university graduates annually are absorbed into the state’s growing industrial ecosystem.
He said the state government is synchronising workforce development with industrial expansion to ensure skilled labour is ready once factories begin operations.
“For example, if a factory requires 12 months to be built, we use that lead time to prepare and train students according to labour market needs,” he said.
Several investors have already signed memoranda of understanding with universities including Universiti Teknologi Malaysia and Universiti Tun Hussein Onn Malaysia, with some students being sent to countries such as China for intensive technical training.
Natazha said Johor is also becoming more selective in attracting investments, prioritising automation-driven companies to reduce reliance on low-skilled foreign labour while creating more professional jobs for engineers, technicians and accountants.
“Companies will continue to rely on manual labour if they do not automate. We want investment output that aligns with the government’s aspirations in JS-SEZ and offers salaries that match the local economy,” he said.
Johor recorded RM110 billion in approved investments last year, the highest among Malaysian states, and is now targeting RM140 billion in approved investments by 2026.
