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SLFEB to seek better deal for expatriate workers at int’l meet held in Colombo
Sri Lanka will join some 10 other countries in calling for better wages and welfare benefits that include insurance cover, etc for local expatriate workers taking up employment in West Asia and other foreign capitals, Sri Lanka Bureau of Foreign Employment (SLFEB) Additional General Manager, Mangala Randeniya said yesterday. “The matter will be taken up for discussion when the group of countries meet at the Colombo Process Meet to be held on Tuesday and Wednesday,” Mr. Randeniya said.
The conference will be chaired by Foreign Employment Minister Dilan Perera.According to Mr. Randeniya, while working conditions and benefits for workers were satisfactory in certain countries, there were drawbacks in countries such as Saudi Arabia and Kuwait.He added that irregularities such as non-payment of wages on the scheduled date, lack of proper health insurance policies, abuse by employers and lack of proper social protection for the workers, will be the main issues that will be discussed at the meeting.
He added that, owing to these issues, thousands of Sri Lankan workers in several West Asian countries, mainly women from the low income domestic sector, were known to have fled from their employers and sought shelter at mercy homes. He added that the highest number of run-away Lankan domestics were reported from Kuwait and Saudi Arabia.
Most of these workers complain of abuse by their employers, non-payment of wages, excessively long working hours etc, compelling the authorities to advise those seeking employment in the domestic sector, to avoid these two countries, he added. “The countries billed to attend the Colombo Process Meet are India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia, China, The Philippines and Malaysia,” Mr Randeniya said.
Most of the participants will be senior officials attached to the relevant labour ministries and departments of their respective countries. He added that an invitation had also been sent to the receiving countries to participate at the meeting as observers, but there has been a zero response from that side.
Meanwhile, Faizer Maickeen of the Association of Licensed Foreign Employment Agencies (ALFEA) told the Sunday Times that the grouping had been invited only for the opening ceremony and nothing after that. “ALFEA has some 800-plus members who are the main stakeholders in the foreign employment industry, but has been left out of the meeting. Therefore, we have decided to boycott the opening ceremony,” Mr. Maickeen said.