The complaints registered at the Department of Foreign Employment (DoFE) are investigated and inquired without following standard operation procedures, says a report. Such haphazard handling of both individual and institutional complaints has led to inconsistencies, barring the migrant workers from access to justice and compensation, the report adds. 

“Labour Migration for Employment, a status report for Nepal: 2013/14” report, prepared by the Ministry of Labor and Employment under the leadership of Department of Foreign Employment (DoFE) with the support from International Labor Organization (ILO), International Organization for Migration (IOM) and the Asia Foundation, has further recommended to set a standards for handling such complaints.

“Develop a standard operation procedure on handling complaints and grievances of migrant workers to promote and facilitate their access to justice,” reads one of the recommendations in the report. 

The DoFE received a total of 1,406 complaints against institutions in 2013/14 and 1,060 complaints in the fiscal year 2012/13. In the two years, the Investigation and Inquiry Section accepted 272 institutional cases for investigation and hearing.

The report, which was prepared with the purpose of assessing the level of labor migration and foreign employment in Nepal by collecting information available with relevant government agencies, highlights government-led initiatives at the policy and structural levels for promoting safe migration and the rights and welfare of migrant workers. 

The report also calls for a review of the age threshold for women migrants as well as the ban on their entering certain countries.

Published on: 22 September 2014 | Republica