26/01/2021
Overworked, unpaid and abused, Bangladeshi women return from Middle East | Prothom Alo
She did not want to return in the midst of the pandemic. “Although I requested my
employer to let me work, they sent me back home forcefully,” she said in an interview.
Hashi had worked for two years and three months in KSA for a monthly wage of SAR
800 (USD 200). “In the last month (July 2020) I was not paid my due wage of USD 200
by my employer,” she claimed.
She sought the assistance of Bangladesh government to help her get her last month’s
unpaid wage.
“I had worked for many additional hours but was never given any additional money.
Every day I had to work for 20 to 22 hours. There was not even enough time for me to
sleep,” said Hashi, who hails from Barisal, the Southern district in Bangladesh.
Migrant worker Parul Akhter, 32, returned from Lebanon in August after losing her
job. Her wages for the last eight months remain with the employer.
In an interview, she said that currently there is scarcity of jobs in Lebanon due to
many other reasons including the spread of Corona virus.
She had su ered a lot, she said. Not only did she have to work for her employer, she
also had to work in the homes of their relatives. “Finally after all that, I was not paid
by them,” she said.
Parul, from Narsingdi district, migrated to Lebanon eight years ago paying BDT
45,000 (UD$530). Her monthly wage, when it was paid, was US$ 150.
“Over the last two years, I have not been paid regular wages. Since January of this year
the employer asked me to work at his relative’s home. I got no wage during these eight
months. Sometimes there was no food to eat,” she said.
Parul worked under a single Kafeel as she was not allowed to change her sponsor. She
claims that her total unpaid wages would come to US$ 4,000.
“Whenever I asked for wages, I would be tortured physically,” she said, adding that
her repatriation was facilitated by Bangladesh embassy in Beirut.
When asked for o
cial comment about the situation of women migrant workers,
Expatriates Welfare and Overseas Employment Ministry’s secretary Dr Ahmed
Munirus Saleheen said that the government has taken some steps to help all migrants,
including women workers, who were coming back home during the pandemic.
He said that the government has already allocated BDT 700 crore (USD 82.35 million)
for supporting the returnee migrant workers. “The rehabilitation loans launched by
the government, would be equally applicable for male and female returnee migrants.”
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