Nearly 10,000 Bangladeshis have lost their jobs in Bahrain due to the outbreak of coronavirus, said the chief executive officer of the Labour Market Regulatory Authority (LMRA) of the tiny gulf state.
During an online meeting with Bangladesh Ambassador in Manama Dr Nazrul Islam on Tuesday, LMRA chief Ausamah Abdulla Al Absi also said that due to the declaration of the amnesty for the irregular workers, 15,000 irregular Bangladeshis workers have gotten new jobs, according to officials of the Foreign Ministry and the embassy in Bahrain.
Since 80% of the irregular workers are from Bangladesh, the amnesty will benefit the Bangladeshis the most, he said.
Around a total of 200,000 Bangladeshis are currently working in Bahrain.
On April 3, the LMRA announced the amnesty for irregular migrants with immediate effect until December 31. Irregular migrants will not need to pay any fines to regularise their residency status or leave the country.
It has also cancelled monthly work permit fees and fees related to issuing and renewing work permits for three months beginning April 1, 2020.
The move is intended to help alleviate the impact of the Covid-19 outbreak on employers, and facilitate the hiring of irregular and regular workers.
According to the officials, about 50,000 irregular Bangladeshis live in Bahrain out of whom 40,000 could be regularised.
The remaining about 10,000 may not be able to be regularised. People who had travelled to the country on tourist visas and subsequently undertook employments, have court cases against them and with travel ban will be out of the amnesty.
During the meeting, the LMRA chief assured the ambassador that during the amnesty period, no irregular workers would be arrested and called for abiding by the steps taken by the Bahraini government to fight the pandemic.
Expressing gratitude for the amnesty for the irregular workers, Ambassador Dr Nazrul Islam apprised Absi of the awareness measures taken by his mission to stop spread of coronavirus.
He also sought assistance from the LMRA CEO as to how the employment of the Bangladeshi workers could be ensured and what kind of training they could be imparted to achieve that.