BMET sues recruiting agencies' body

The Bureau of Manpower, Employment and Training (BMET) filed a case against the president and secretary general of Bangladesh Association of International Recruiting Agencies (Baira) allegedly for their involvement in an attack on its office on Wednesday.
The case was filed when Baira started its strike through suspending manpower export activities on Monday, blaming the government for losing foreign job markets.
Abul Kalam Azad, BMET assistant director, filed the case with Ramna Police Station against 20 to 25 officials of Baira.
Begum Shamsun Nahar, director general of the BMET, alleged that Baira president and secretary general led the attack.
However, Ali Haider Chowdhury, Baira secretary general, denied the allegations.
“None of us (president and secretary general) went to the BMET office yesterday (Wednesday). It is really sad that the BMET DG brought allegations against us,” Chowdhury told The Daily Star.
After the suspension of manpower export activities, owners of some recruiting agencies and staffs of Baira were going to the BMET office and checking whether any of its members went there in violation of the suspension, he said.
On Wednesday, some Baira staffs went to the immigration section of the BMET and got into an argument with its officials but the incident ended immediately, according to the officials.
Earlier, Khandker Mosharraf Hossain, expatriates' welfare minister, said around 72 female workers may leave the country for Hong Kong by the end of April.
The workers will be employed as domestic maids in Hong Kong and get minimum TK 40,000 per month as salary, Hossain said.