VARIOUS: Migrant workers from South Asia hope to find jobs, despite the dire economic environment

Record ID: 348391

  • Title: VARIOUS: Migrant workers from South Asia hope to find jobs, despite the dire economic environment
  • Date: 12th September 2009
  • Summary: SINGAPORE (RECENT) (REUTERS) SHOP HOUSES AT SERANGOON ROAD WORKERS WALKING INTO RESTAURANT WHERE WORKERS GET FREE MEALS WORKER REGISTERING FOR FOOD COUPON (SOUNDBITE) (English) CHIEF EDITOR AND CEO OF BANGLAR KANTHA, A K M MOSHIN, SAYING: "Only have problem with the shipyard sector. So construction sites till now not much problem. But there is still problem - this cat
  • Embargoed: 27th September 2009 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Topics: Economic News
  • Reuters ID: LVA4P415BLND2KEY6QIQ8GJZVE74
  • Story Text: Migrant workers from South Asia cling to the hope of earning money for their families in countries like Singapore, Malaysia and Dubai although many overseas jobs have been axed since the the global economic crisis hit a year ago.
    One year since the start of the global financial crisis, the number of workers leaving their countries to find employment overseas has fallen in countries like Bangladesh.
    Many have returned to their home country empty-handed, and prospects for employment there are slim.
    A worker who returned to Bangladesh from Singapore some six months ago came to the international airport to send off a friend, who is going abroad with a job.
    "I spend about 200,000 taka (2,900 U.S. dollars) to get the job. And I worked there for only two months and was jobless for about nine months. There were 700 Bangladeshi workers working in that company, and gradually all of them were sacked and returned. When we asked them why they are sending us back, not giving us any job, they said 'we don't know anything, you should ask your Bangladeshi agent who sent you', and then we had to come back," said Sajibour Rahman.
    He added that he has been jobless since he got back and the government is not helping support them.
    Migrant workers are one of the sectors hardest hit by the financial crisis, as massive construction projects are halted, factories shut down, fewer goods are imported or exported and companies are unable to makemeet.
    Singapore is a country that is largely dependent on migrant workers in the shipping and construction industries.
    In 2007, Singapore's construction, shipping and manufacturing industries were red hot, hiring almost 800,000 migrants in 2007. But as the economy has gone into recession, demand for labour has gone down.
    According to the Ministry of Manpower, as of end 2008, there were approximately 230,000 foreign construction workers in Singapore.
    Although there is no definite figure as to the number of migrant workers expected to lose their jobs from the economic crisis, anecdotal evidence and estimates from aid agencies show a significant number will be affected.
    A.K.M. Moshin, a Bangladeshi journalist based in Singapore has been counselling unemployed migrant workers for over a year now.
    He says the number of workers coming to Singapore has decreased by 20 to 30 percent, and there are certain sectors doing worse than others.
    "Only have problem with the shipyard sector. So construction sites till now not much problem. But there is still problem - this catered by some unscrupulous agent and the employer," Moshin said.
    An Indian restaurant in Singapore's Little India district serves free breakfast and dinner on weekdays for workers who have lost their jobs.
    A group of workers eating there said they were working for a government-owned shipyard until two months ago. Now, their permits have expired with the employer owing them permit extension money which they paid earlier.
    "Now no job, don't have. Now our permit also finish. Two months, somebody two months, some one month. Permit finish already, but boss don't give permit. Permit money also cutting, somebody 900, somebody 1200," said Amjligon.
    The "Free Meal Programme" is run by Singapore based organisation Transient Workers Count Too. It is dedicated to looking after the welfare of migrant workers.
    John Gee, President of the organisation says in the past few months, the number of workers coming to them for help has decreased, largely because many of the workers have gone back home due to unemployment.
    "Clearly the Ministry of Manpower (Singapore's government employment agency) is issuing fewer permits because they want to make sure companies have jobs waiting for workers and the workers don't come and find themselves without real jobs. And we also think that probably some workers whose jobs have already end have been sent back pretty promptly. And so the number of workers who are looking around for assistance in these circumstances is lower," said Gee.
    Analysts say the number of migrant workers affected by the downturn will increase significantly in the near future.
    Anand Kumar, professor of sociology at India's Jawahar Lal Nehru University said the vulnerable group of foreign workers from Bangladesh, India and Pakistan are the most resource-less people, and the crisis will only reduce their bargaining power.
    "They are trapped, they are trapped because they have no past to hang on to in terms of economic choices, they have no resources to shift from more vulnerable areas, more depressed areas to slightly moderate zones of economy."
    Human rights groups say many of the world's estimated 100 million migrant workers are in dire predicaments as economic woes in the Gulf, Singapore and Taiwan lead to mass layoffs of labourers from countries such as Bangladesh, China, India, Pakistan, the Philippines and Sri Lanka.
    Layoffs of these migrant workers may raise unemployment and poverty in their home countries as they return without jobs and often with hefty debts. It could also slow economic growth in countries such as Bangladesh, the Philippines and Sri Lanka which are deeply reliant on remittances sent home by migrant workers.
    According to media reports, the Bangladesh Association of International Recruiting Agents says jobs for Bangladeshi workers overseas had fallen by about 50 per cent this year.
    As a result of the economic slowdown, the World Bank said it expects remittances, the lifeblood for millions in the developing world, to moderate significantly over the next two years and that remittances in 2009 will fall almost 1 percent. Global remittance flows stood at $283 billion U.S. dollar last year.
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