The government needs to address the rising cost of foreign worker recruitment in Budget 2016, the Malaysian Employers Federation (MEF) said.

The MEF, in a statement, claimed that foreign worker recruitment costs had increased due to outsourcing of services by the government, imposition of levy, expiration of FOMEMA's 15-year concession, and high medical inspection cost.

This is one of the measures outlined by the MEF in its Budget 2016 proposals to arrest the escalating costs of doing business which it said had become overbearing.