Saudis ban Bangladeshi workers in two sectors
April 4, 2008
Riyadh: Saudi Labour Minister Dr Gazi Al Gosaibi has clarified that the decision to stop hiring of Bangladeshi workers was in the housing and agricultural sectors.
“This decision was taken in view of the fact that the quota fixed for Bangladeshi workers in the kingdom was over,” Gosaibi said.
“Their hiring would be restricted to medical and engineering fields. However, there will be an exception for the jobs in the maintenance and cleaning sectors with the condition that their percentage in all the sectors should not exceed 20 per cent,” he told reporters here on Sunday.
The minister’s clarification came amid rumours that the Kingdom had halted hiring Bangladeshis altogether after media reports pointing to their involvement in most of the criminal acts.
Saudi Arabia is Bangladesh’s largest labour market whose number has exceeded 1.5 million. Bangladeshi workers got the biggest share (23.5 per cent of the 1.5 million) of Saudi visas issued in 2007. According to labour market sources, Bangladeshi workers might be replaced by workers from India, Thailand and Myanmar.
Dr Al Gosaibi said the Kingdom’s policy of rationalising recruitment is based on several factors, and most important among them is achieving balance among various nationals who have been hired in the labour market. However, the minister hinted that there may be a reviewing of the decision with regard to Bangladeshis in future.
A spokesman for Bangladeshi Expatriates’ Welfare and Overseas Employment Ministry recently admitted that some Bangladeshis in Saudi Arabia were engaged in illegal activities such claiming shops illegally, selling banned CDs, running illegal telephone business, stealing manhole covers from roads and footpaths, stealing electricity and telephone cables, and printing fake currency, as reported by Saudi media, in utter violation of the Saudi laws.
“Such acts put the image of Bangladeshi workers in the Kingdom and Bangladesh in a bad light. The Ministry had already asked the Bangladeshi workers to abide by the Saudi laws,” he said.
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