Romania labour market opening up

Romania has emerged as a destination for Bangladeshi migrant workers.

There is high demand for foreign workers in the European Union member state, and Bangladesh's overseas employment ministry last month gave permission to Asia Continental Group, a recruitment agency, to send 1,255 workers for two companies in Romania.

The "employment permit" issued to the agency on July 12 mentions that men and women will be recruited by the companies as cleaners, chauffeurs, locksmiths, welders, marine pipefitters, electricians, nurses, IT engineers, civil engineers, etc.

Romania Insider, a news site, reports that a consular mission of Romania granted 5,400 work visas to Bangladeshis between April and July.

Lokman Shah, proprietor of Asia Continental Group, said Romania's demand for migrant workers is nearly four times higher than the 1,255 approved by the ministry.

The monthly salary of the workers will range between $400 and $1,200. They will be employed initially for two to three years, and the job contracts are renewable.

The work and living conditions in the country will be good, Lokman said.

However, the Bangladeshi authorities should try to make sure the workers do not attempt to illegally migrate to another country from Romania, he said.

According to the recent media reports, several Bangladeshis were arrested while they were trying to illegally migrate to other European countries from Romania.

Romania Insider also reports that there were 84,936 foreign employees in Romania by the end of June.

The largest source of migrant workers in Romania is Turkey while Nepal and Moldova are other major sources, it added.

In recent years, Bangladesh has been trying to expand its labour market to Europe. In February this year, Bangladesh signed a memorandum of understanding with Greece. As per the agreement, 4,000 Bangladeshis are expected to be hired each year by farms in Greece.

Imran Ahmad, overseas employment minister, met Romanian Ambassador to Bangladesh Daniela Mariana Sezonov Tane in March and discussed several areas of overseas employment cooperation.

The ministry has set each worker's migration cost at a maximum of Tk 4.22 lakh, reads the employment permit issued to Asia Continental Group.

The agency has started to submit workers' passports to Romanian authorities, Lokman said, adding that the workers were expected to start flying to Romania in a couple of months.