In a statement, Margma president Supramaniam Shanmugam said its members collectively produced and exported gloves to 195 countries around the world, making up over two-thirds of the world’s supply.

“Since the government’s announcement on the EMCO in Selangor, global customers have been calling manufacturers expressing great concern over delivery of gloves to them.”

He said this had put producers under great pressure.

While the association supported the government’s efforts to curb the transmission of Covid-19, adding that they had been able to cope with 60% capacity limits during the first phase of the National Recovery Plan, EMCO shutdowns had put a major dent in their ability to supply world demand.

“Hence we are calling for an urgent meeting with the international trade and industry ministry (Miti) to work together to address concerns by all parties involved.

“We are urgently appealing to the government to allow these glove factories to continue operating while adhering to strict SOPs.”

Supramaniam said glove producers had already agreed to vaccinate all employees under different state and national schemes, and were awaiting delivery of the jabs needed.

Similarly, he said manufacturers had been adhering to the existing SOPs from the government and had committed to bearing the cost of saliva-based test kits to ensure frequent worker screenings could be performed.