S Korea doubles recruitment quota for Bangladeshis

South Korea, a vital job market for Bangladeshi workers, doubled the quota for Bangladeshis based on an increased demand for foreign workers post-Covid.

The East Asian country confirmed their recruitment plan to the Bangladesh Overseas Employment and Services Limited (Boesl) in July this year, officials said.

It would hire 6,000 workers from next year, said Boesl managing director Md Billal Hossain.

Earlier, Bangladesh had a job quota of 3,000 workers in the Korean market that hires for different kinds of industries through an employment permit system (EPS) for 4.8 years.

Hossain, who went into retirement in August, said they have fulfilled the current year's quota and received an additional quota of 2,000 from Korea.

On the other hand, Korea has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Bangladesh on hiring seasonal agriculture and welding workers for a period of six months.

Boesl officials said a total of 200 workers would be sent to Korea in the agriculture sector under the new arrangement by this month. Each worker will get a monthly wage of Tk 120,000.

Asked, the Boesl chief said Bangladesh has adequate manpower to be sent to that market. The government's 43 technical training centres are providing language training, which is the most important qualification for Korean jobs. A significant number of private language training centres are also in Bangladesh.

So, they [government] are capable of meeting the demand for Korean employers, Mr Hossain mentioned. Bangladeshi workers get a wage of Tk1.6 lakh for industrial jobs while professionals Tk3.5 lakh each.

Korea is an emerging market for Bangladeshi workers, and the government is thus trying to tap the opportunity properly, according to officials.

Boesl has extended the duration of skilled development and behavioural training from one week to two weeks for Korea-bound workers, they added.

South Korea is a major source of remittance earnings for Bangladesh as the majority of migrants from this country send remittance through banking channels.

Bangladesh sent more than 23,000 workers on the EPS basis to the Korean market until April 2022. Korea hires 50pc workers through examinations and the rest through a lottery system.

Those who qualify the test need not go through the lottery. It recruits unskilled workers from 16 selected countries, including Bangladesh, through EPS.

Boesl has been sending workers to South Korea since 2008 under a MoU signed between the two governments.