Muktadesh Desk: The Bangladesh Association of International Recruiting Agencies (BAIRA), an organization of manpower exporters, has demanded the withdrawal of the conditions given for sending workers to the Malaysian labor market.
On Thursday (October 30) afternoon, they submitted a memorandum to Expatriate Welfare and Overseas Employment Advisor Dr. Asif Nazrul, calling these conditions ‘unreasonable’, ‘purposeful’ and ‘conspiratorial’.
The memorandum was signed by former BAIRA president MH Selim, senior vice president Riaz-ul-Islam, joint secretary general Fakhrul Islam, Akbar Hossain Manju, executive members Haque Zahirul Joe, Kamal Uddin, and Sports, Entertainment and Cultural Secretary Rehena Parveen.
On Wednesday, the Expatriates’ Welfare and Overseas Employment Ministry said that Bangladesh will request all recruiting agencies from countries that meet the 10 conditions given by Malaysia to be listed for sending workers. For this, all agencies capable of meeting the conditions will have to apply by November 7.
These conditions include an office of 10,000 square feet, five years of experience, experience of sending 3,000 workers in five years, running a business for three years, testimonials from five employers, and having a training center in one’s own name. In response, the memorandum said, “Every condition published in the notification is purposeful, conspiratorial, unrealistic and unacceptable.”
Bayra leaders say that we have sent lakhs of workers to different sectors in Malaysia from 1991 to 2016 without any conditions. In 2017, illegal syndicates, discrimination, exploitation and looting of thousands of crores of taka began. Every recruiting agency in Bangladesh has obtained a license by fulfilling all the conditions of the Bangladesh government. We have been sending workers all over the world. No country has ever imposed such conditions.
The memorandum states that due to the COVID pandemic, the Russia-Ukraine war, the Malaysian labor market syndicate, the lack of registration of numerous agencies with the Saudi embassy, and the suspension of sending workers to various Middle Eastern countries including the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Qatar, Iraq, Libya, and Oman, most recruiting agencies have not been able to send the desired number of workers in the last 5-6 years.
The condition of operating a 10,000 square foot office for 3 consecutive years, and the condition of individual training centers despite the collective presence of the Bayra Training Center, is unrealistic and very expensive; which is a tool to increase immigration costs.
It is also said that ‘not a single’ Malaysian C license holder has a 10,000 square foot office. Even in countries that supply workers, including Nepal, Pakistan, India, Myanmar, the Philippines, and Indonesia, no 10,000 square foot office is operated.
