Cheated workers denied justice

Fortune seekers trapped in false promises by manpower brokers; culprits mostly unpunished
Belal Hossain Biplob

In January last year, Mosharraf Hossain along with 26 other Bangladeshis went to Iraq to work for a construction firm. Some local brokers arranged their jobs through four Bangladeshi recruiting agencies.
Each of the poor men paid Tk 2.5 lakh for the job in what the agencies said was an Iraqi company. Like in most cases, they gave the money without any receipts.Under the verbal agreement, they were to get a minimum monthly pay of Tk 25,000 plus lodging. But when they landed in the Middle East country, there was no job. The agencies' brokers confined them at a labour camp of the company, M Kodia General Trading, in Najaf city and asked them to wait.
But it soon became clear to them that they were cheated by the brokers and the agencies, and contacted their families back home. After living in terrible conditions for nearly a year, they returned home empty-handed between November last year and January this year with the help of the Bangladesh Mission there.

Currently, at least 180 more Bangladeshis, who were similarly cheated by brokers and agencies, are waiting to come back.
CHEATED YET NOT COMPENSATED
On his return in December last, Mosharraf, from Tangail, and some of his fellow jobseekers submitted a written complaint to the expatriates welfare and overseas employment ministry demanding compensation and action against the agencies.
Credit : thedailystar.net/frontpage