South Korea has shown renewed interest in employing Bangladeshi workers following a new measure by the Bangladesh authorities that will restrict illegal labour movement once they are employed in that country.
Expatriates’ Welfare and Overseas Employment minister Khandaker Mosharraf Hossain on Wednesday told reporters of the new development at his Secretariat office following a meeting with a high-profile business delegation from South Korea.
The minister said they had assured him of discussing the matter with 10,000 industry-owners to determine their manpower demand and start the process to import the required labour force on their return.
‘The matter will be finalised during my tour of South Korea.’ The minister is set to fly on October 24.
Hossain also revealed 4,000 Bangladeshis were currently working in South Korea and 3,800 more workers would be going this year.
Bangladesh has around 4,000 trained workers, who are proficient in the Korean language, ready to go to the country. The government can send them after receiving the host country’s concurrence, he pointed out.
The drop in South Korean manpower import was caused by the tendency of Bangladeshi workers to shift jobs.
The recent amendment of the regulations has included a provision to fine a worker Tk 3 lakh if he changes the job before the expiry of the stipulated deadline of the contract. The fine will be collected from their relatives in Bangladesh.
He further said the South Korean delegation was assured that illegal migration of workers to the country would be stopped.
The minister also revealed the process of including provisions for stricter punitive measures to the existing regulation for those involved in exporting illegal workers to the country is underway.
‘New scopes to export manpower to Saudi Arabia and Malaysia have opened up,’ the minister added, saying that Malaysia will be importing some fishermen soon and will seek for more manpower in the fields of construction, agriculture and plantation.
