Many Bangladeshi migrant workers have been repatriated arbitrarily during the
coronavirus pandemic, who have remained deprived of their due payments, he added.
William Gois, coordinator of regional civil society group Migrant Forum in Asia, said
states were unfortunately not documenting their learning of the Covid-19 pandemic.
As countries of origin began repatriation processes, it is important that they document
grievances of repatriated migrant workers, he said.
The embassy should seek the power of attorney from migrant workers so that they can
follow up with these cases even after the worker has returned to their home country, he
added.
This is something that is possible in Gulf countries, he said, adding "All that is required for
the mission is to document and then follow up."
He said grievances can be documented during the quarantine stage upon workers' return
to the country of origin.
Bangladesh, through its bilateral agreements and relationship with labour destination
countries, should insist that they do not repatriate Bangladeshi migrant workers without
giving them the opportunity to file any labour complaint, William said.
Rights activist and reserved seat lawmaker Aroma Dutta said formal letters from
ministries concerned should be issued regarding workers' unpaid wages, especially
addressing the "lost remittance" and a previously made proposal of getting six months'
wage for workers who will be terminated.
She said an in-depth mapping was required on how and from what region migrant
workers were going overseas and subsequently losing everything.
The ministry concerned should collect strong evidence to realise unpaid dues of migrant
workers, said Syed Saiful Haque, executive director of WARBE Development Foundation.
Documentation is important for such negotiation, he said.
RMMRU Chair Prof Tasneem Siddiqui said recently they and Manusher Jonno Foundation
(MJF) interviewed 50 migrants who returned because of the pandemic from Saudi Arabia,
United Arab Emirates, Qatar and Malaysia.
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