Enrol potential migrant workers to reduce graft by recruiting agencies

The parliamentary standing committee on expatriates' welfare ministry yesterday asked the ministry officials to start registration system and enrol the prospective workers willing to go abroad in a bid to reduce corruption and irregularities of the recruiting agencies.
“People who want to go abroad to manage employment are often cheated by a section recruiting agencies. Therefore, the committee has recommended to start registration system under which prospective workers will be enrolled,” Anisul Islam Mahmud, chairman of the committee, told reporters after a meeting at the Jatiya Sangsad Bhaban.
“The manpower recruiting agencies will have to recruit people who are included in the registration and we believe that it will reduce corruption and irregularities of the agencies,” he added.
The committee chairman said the registration process has already been started in some upazilas and unions as test cases.
The committee in its meeting asked the expatriate ministry to take steps so that the recruiting agencies cannot exploit people who wish to go to Romania, a newly invented labour market for employment.
“Romania will receive only 8,000 people from the non-European countries, but the manpower recruiting agencies are saying that the country will receive more than 10,000 people from Bangladesh as workers, we therefore warn all not to tempted by the recruiting agencies,” he added.
The committee also asked the ministry officials to investigate into taking extra money by the agencies from the South Korea-bound Bangladeshi workers.
“The highest amount to go to South Korea may take only Tk one to 1.5 lakh, but the fact is that the recruiting agencies are taking Tk six to seven lakh from the South Korea-bound workers,” Anisul Islam said, adding that, “We have asked the ministry officials to investigate the matter.
He said the committee would send letters to the prime minister and the Election Commission requesting them for taking steps to enrol non-resident Bangladeshis as voters.