Thirty-five Bangladeshi workers have returned home after being dismissed from their jobs in Russia. They arrived at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport at 5:45 pm on Sunday on a Qatar Airways flight.
Shariful Hasan, Associate Director of BRAC, said that through a joint initiative of the Migrant Welfare Desk and Civil Aviation Security, the returning workers were provided with transport assistance and other emergency support at the airport.
Several of the returnees, including Mashiur Rahman from Gaibandha, Asmat Ali from Manikganj, Haiyul Mia from Mymensingh, Azadul Haque from Sirajganj, Prosenjit Rajbanshi from Dhaka, and Md Abdullah from Chapainawabganj, have alleged that they were defrauded in the name of overseas employment. They said that the average cost for each of them to travel to Russia was Tk 700,000.
According to the workers, the recruiting company decided to terminate their employment and send them back to Bangladesh without providing any clear reason. They also said that the process of repatriating a total of 120 Bangladeshi workers after terminating their employment has already begun. As part of this process, 35 workers have returned in the first phase.
The workers further alleged that in July last year they were sent to Russia through recruiting agency Kashipur Overseas (RL-1317) after obtaining clearance from the Bureau of Manpower, Employment and Training (BMET). Although the clearance mentioned the Russian company Mars International Limited Trade Development, they were employed upon arrival by a different company—LLC Alabuga Development Company.
Under the terms of their contracts, the workers were supposed to be employed as factory workers, but in practice they were made to work in building construction.
The victims also said that while still in Bangladesh they were initially transferred through a travel agency named Jubayer Overseas and then handed over to the recruiting agency TPS-360 Bangladesh Limited (RL-995). This agency later completed all formalities and arranged the necessary BMET clearance. However, they alleged that TPS-360 Bangladesh Limited used another recruiting agency, Kashipur Overseas (RL-1317), in obtaining the BMET clearance.
The affected workers have called on the relevant government authorities to intervene, investigate the matter and take legal action against those responsible.