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Ahmadul Kobir, Malaysia: Malaysia’s labour market is set to reopen to Bangladeshi workers after a prolonged suspension, raising fresh hopes among thousands of young people seeking overseas employment. But even before the market officially reopens, confusion has begun to grow over the recruitment process, costs and the role of recruiting agencies.
Although the Malaysian government published its recruitment procedures and outlined the required steps nearly a month ago, the information has not been adequately disseminated in Bangladesh. As a result, many jobseekers still do not know how, through which process or through whom they can legally travel to Malaysia for work.
The information vacuum has quickly been filled by recruiting agencies, travel agencies, brokers and middlemen. Through social media campaigns, job offers and promises of quick deployment, they are attracting prospective workers. For many jobseekers, the word of brokers is therefore becoming more influential than official government information.
The government has warned people not to submit passports, pay money or undergo medical examinations until further instructions are issued. Yet activities by some licensed recruiting agencies, travel agencies and brokers have reportedly continued. Their social media promotions are encouraging young people to act on their assurances rather than verified government information.
The situation has raised fears of a repeat of longstanding problems in Malaysia-bound recruitment. For years, workers have complained of harassment, uncertainty and excessive costs from the initial stage of seeking overseas employment until boarding a flight.
Allegations of false promises, withholding information, demands for money at different stages, passport retention and misuse of passports are also not new.
More recently, complaints have emerged over the one-time password (OTP) required for BMET emigration clearance. Some workers allege that they do not receive the OTP at the airport unless they pay amounts demanded by agents or brokers, forcing them to make payments even at the final stage of their journey.
There are also allegations that a new form of intermediary system has developed in which recruiting agencies or brokers, rather than workers themselves, control the OTP process.
These irregularities did not emerge overnight. Due to inadequate monitoring and enforcement at different levels over the years, many such practices have effectively become part of the recruitment process. Malaysia’s labour market is a major example of how irregularities can become institutionalised when laws and regulations exist but enforcement remains weak.
Failure to provide citizens with accurate information at the right time not only increases the risk of fraud but also limits their ability to make informed decisions.
The Malaysian government has published details of its recruitment system and briefed officials of the Bangladesh mission. In such circumstances, it was the responsibility of Bangladesh’s Ministry of Expatriates’ Welfare and Overseas Employment to promptly publish the same information in simple language and make it easily accessible to the public.
When official information leaves a vacuum, others will inevitably fill it. The current situation surrounding Malaysia’s labour market is a clear example.
Malaysia is one of Bangladesh’s oldest and most important overseas labour markets. Yet allegations of irregularities in worker recruitment have also persisted for years. The market has been suspended several times following various complaints and subsequently reopened through government initiatives, only to face fresh allegations.
Allegations of visa trading, excessive charges by brokers, bribery at different stages, and additional fees for medical examinations and air tickets have repeatedly surfaced.
Ordinary workers have paid the highest price. There have been cases of workers spending large sums to travel abroad only to find no job, receive unpaid wages, fall victim to employer fraud or face legal complications. Many have ultimately returned home empty-handed, while others have remained in irregular status and faced even greater risks.
A fresh controversy has emerged over a list of 338 Bangladeshi recruiting agencies authorised to send workers to Malaysia.
The list includes 25 principal agencies, 250 associate agencies and 62 agencies working with the government-owned Bangladesh Overseas Employment and Services Limited (BOESL).
The key question is whether the 250 associate agencies will be able to obtain demand letters directly from Malaysian employers and send workers, or whether they will have to operate as sub-agents under the 25 principal agencies.
The issue is significant. Based on past experience, there have been allegations that associate agencies could not send workers independently and had to depend on principal agencies.
Some people familiar with the sector claim that certain agencies on the list do not have the three years of worker-recruitment experience required under Malaysian conditions. Some are even alleged to have no previous experience of sending workers to Malaysia.
Questions have also been raised over the records of some principal agencies in sending workers through BMET emigration clearance.
The government, however, says Bangladesh did not select the 338 agencies. Malaysia selected them according to its own criteria. Under the existing memorandum of understanding, Malaysia has the authority to determine which Bangladeshi recruiting agencies will be used for worker recruitment.
Following publication of the agency list, the biggest question is now the actual cost of sending a worker to Malaysia. With no detailed official announcement on the matter yet, various figures are circulating in the market.
Under the existing memorandum of understanding, Malaysian employers are supposed to bear costs on the Malaysian side, including the immigration levy and airfare. On the Bangladesh side, workers are expected to pay the prescribed BMET clearance fee, medical screening costs and the service charge set by recruiting agencies.
However, based on past experience, workers have reportedly been charged between Tk 500,000 and Tk 700,000. This time, figures ranging from Tk 700,000 to Tk 800,000 are also being mentioned in the market.
Such figures have raised questions in various quarters. If the government has not officially announced the migration cost, how can statements by people holding responsible positions become the basis for financial transactions in the market?
Many labour-market stakeholders fear that a significant gap between the officially determined cost and the actual cost could create opportunities for syndicates and middlemen to regain their influence.
According to diplomatic sources, the Malaysian government has informed the Bangladesh government in writing about how principal and associate recruiting agencies will operate.
According to the information available, the principal agencies designated by Malaysia will have the main authority over worker deployment, while associate agencies will be involved in worker sourcing and processing in Bangladesh.
However, this structure has not been clearly explained to the general public. As a result, even after the publication of the list of 338 agencies, jobseekers remain uncertain about whom they should contact, at what stage they should make payments and how much they should pay for specific services.
The announcement that 10,000 Bangladeshi workers will be sent to Malaysia through BOESL under a special arrangement at zero migration cost has added another layer of confusion.
The question is: if the government can send a specific number of workers at zero migration cost, why should workers have to pay additional money under the private recruitment system?
If successful, the initiative could provide an effective model for transparent and safe overseas employment. However, it remains to be seen whether the zero-cost model will remain limited to the 10,000 workers or eventually be reflected in the wider recruitment system.
Under Bangladesh’s laws and regulations, workers are not supposed to seek jobs through brokers or middlemen. In the recruitment process, a demand letter from a foreign employer is supposed to come first, followed by government approval and selection of workers from the BMET database.
In reality, however, the number of workers registered in the BMET database is inadequate compared with demand. The law allows workers to be recruited through public advertisements if there are insufficient workers in the database. It is at this stage that jobseekers may approach recruiting agencies.
In many cases, however, there are allegations that workers are recruited and money collected even before a demand letter is received. BMET registration and other formalities are then completed later. This has created a significant gap between the legal recruitment process and the reality on the ground.
Although BMET registration is mandatory for overseas jobseekers, great
