Equipped with the authority to take legal action against manpower agencies that cheat foreign job-seekers, the Department of Foreign Employment (DoFE), under the Ministry of Labour, Employment and Social Security (MoLESS), has started cracking down on errant recruitment firms. After a guideline titled ‘Monitoring Team Mobilisation Guideline-2019’ was endorsed by the ministry on Friday, the department raided two manpower agencies on Sunday and seized Rs 350,000. The DoFE monitoring task force raided Paradise Manpower in Lalitpur yesterday for charging job aspirants 12 times higher fees than that fixed by the government. Similarly, a DoFE task force also raided Target Consultant Human Resources in Pokhara for interviewing job aspirants to Malaysia, a labour destination that has been banned by the government.

According to Bhisma Kumar Bhusal, director general at DoFE, the department had been facing various legal hurdles in cracking down on errant manpower agencies. “With the guideline in place, it has become easier for us to act on complaints or tip off of any manpower agency cheating Nepali migrants.” According to him, there are thousands of complaints related to wrongdoings by manpower agencies that the department had not been able to act upon due to lack of the guideline. “Now, we will be able to verify and take legal action against the errant firms as per the law.”

As per the guideline, DoFE is able to mobilise task force as per the direction or under direct supervision of the director general of the department. In case the department receives any complaint against any manpower agency, whether in writing or verbally, it can immediately mobilise a task force to the field. The DoFE team will also monitor whether or not the manpower firms are abiding by the Foreign Employment Act, directives, guidelines or other directions.

As per the directive, the task force will able to seek support from Nepal Police or Armed Police Force for added security during the raid. The team should submit its raid report to the director general within 24 hours and submit the final report within three days. Interestingly, it is to be noted that the government has finally prepared a guideline aimed at minimising the risks of Nepali migrants being cheated by recruitment firms 35 long years after the government formally started sending Nepalis abroad for employment.

 Published on: 6 August 2019 | The Himalayan Times