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The Bangladesh Association of International Recruiting Agencies (BAIRA) has expressed deep concern over reports that only 25 recruiting agencies have been selected to send Bangladeshi workers to Malaysia.
The Foreign Workers Centralized Management System (FWCMS) recently published a list of 25 Bangladeshi recruiting agencies eligible to recruit workers for Malaysia.
The list was published on August 21.
In a statement issued on Sunday, BAIRA warned that restricting the Malaysian labour market to a limited number of agencies could create opportunities for syndication and monopolistic practices, drawing on what it described as bitter past experiences.
According to BAIRA, previous arrangements involving a limited number of recruiting agencies had led to allegations of syndication, excessive migration costs, irregularities, discrimination and overcharging of workers.
Such practices not only financially harmed workers but also deprived many legitimate and experienced recruiting agencies of fair opportunities.
BAIRA questioned why the Malaysian labour market should be limited to only 25 agencies when Bangladesh has around 2,500 licensed recruiting agencies.
It warned that giving exclusive advantages to a particular group could undermine healthy competition and increase migration costs.
The association urged the Prime Minister and the Ministry of Expatriates’ Welfare and Overseas Employment to ensure full transparency in the selection process and prevent any form of syndication or monopoly.
BAIRA also called for the Malaysian labour market to remain open to all eligible and legitimate recruiting agencies under a transparent and competitive system.
It demanded reasonable and lower migration costs for workers to prevent agencies or groups from charging excessive fees.
The association further proposed introducing a one-stop service through the government-run Bangladesh Overseas Employment and Services Limited (BOESL), allowing all legitimate recruiting agencies equal opportunities to send workers to Malaysia.
Malaysia’s labour market for Bangladeshi workers had remained closed since May 31, 2024.
The latest move to reopen the market has therefore drawn significant attention from recruiting agencies and migrant workers.
BAIRA said the government should ensure that the reopening of the Malaysian labour market does not lead to a repeat of the controversial syndication practices of the past.