Migrant workers can hope to have their grievances addressed, finally.

The Ministry of Labour and Employment has installed a toll-free number — 1116 — at its Singha Durbar office to hear the grievances of migrant workers about the services they receive from the Labour Department, Foreign Employment Depart and other related government offices.

Secretary of the Ministry Som Lal Subedi expressed confidence that the toll-free service will enable the ministry to devise policies friendly towards migrant workers and foreign job aspirants based on their feedback.

People wishing to record their grievances or give feedback can call on the number between 10 am and 5 pm on office days.

Although the Ministry placed an advertisement in government owned Gorkhapatra daily a few days ago, nobody has made any calls yet.

Ministry officials said Gorkhapatra’s limited reach among the targeted groups might have been the reason behind the lack of response.

Economist Chiranjivi Nepal hailed the introduction of toll-free service for migrant workers, saying it will greatly help the targeted group in times of distress.

However, the newspaper advertisement alone is not enough to create desired level of awareness among the targeted group, he added.

“Nepali migrant workers do not even know how to open the emergency door of the plane,” Nepal said. “If the ministry wants to cater to their needs, all the government and private offices that deal with them — labour department, immigration office and foreign employment companies — need to be sensitised,” economist Nepal further said.

He expressed hope that the toll-free service will help migrant workers get their salary from their employers and come in handy when they need to be rescued.

Remittance from foreign employment amounts to 20 per cent of the country’s Gross Domestic Product. According to the annual report of Foreign Employment Department 067/68, the number of foreign job seekers, who went to foreign countries other than India, has reached 2.81 million.

Published on: 22 June 2012 | The Himalayan Times