Thailand wants to hire Bangladeshi workers, delegation meets with Minister
Collected Photo
Thailand's Senate Standing Committee on Labour Nitrutti Suthinon has said his country has been going through labour shortages in some sectors and to overcome the problem Bangkok is interested in signing a deal with Dhaka.
The Thai delegation held a meeting with Expatriates' Welfare and Overseas Employment Minister Ariful Haque Choudhury and State Minister Md. Nurul Haque. The meeting took place on Wednesday afternoon at the ministry's conference room.
The meeting was attended by Nitrutti Suthinon, Chairman of the Senate Standing Committee on Labour of Thailand; Vice Chairman Chinachot Sensaeng; and Dr. Pirasith Kunlartaripon, a member of the Working Committee on Labour.
Chairman Nitrutti Suthinon said that Thailand currently has agreements with four countries for hiring workers. However, due to recent border tensions with Cambodia, hiring workers for construction, halal factories, and agriculture has been slowed down. To overcome this labor shortage, Thailand is interested in signing a deal with Bangladesh as the fifth country. However, they expressed concerns regarding issues such as overstaying after visa expiry, using Thailand as a transit point to travel to other countries, and human trafficking when hiring from Bangladesh.
During the meeting, Expatriates' Welfare and Overseas Employment Minister Ariful Haque Choudhury said, "We want a system where the employer will bear the initial recruitment costs, a standard employment contract in the local language will be ensured, and effective protection mechanisms will exist for workers' welfare, fair wages, housing, and medical insurance."
Meeting sources said Ariful Haque Choudhury accepted the Thai delegation's proposal. He expressed hope that by quickly resolving Thailand's concerns, a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) could be signed between the two countries soon.
State Minister Md. Nurul Haque said Thailand needs skilled manpower, and Bangladesh has an endless reservoir of human resources. Thailand can hire skilled Bangladeshi workers through the government recruiting agency Bangladesh Overseas Employment and Services Limited (BOESL).
Secretary of the Ministry Md. Mokhtar Ahmed noted that Bangladesh has suitable workers for both 'blue-collar' and 'white-collar' jobs in Thailand. Considering cultural and climatic aspects, Thailand is an excellent destination for Bangladeshi workers. However, in this regard, joint efforts must be made to ensure a transparent recruitment process, low-cost dispatch of workers, and the protection of workers' rights.
Additional Secretary Ahmadul Haque, Joint Secretary Devjit Singh, along with other senior officials of the ministry, were present at the time.
