Forced labour bonds happening despite being illegal

The Ministry of Labor and Human Resources (MoLHR) has been receiving some cases of forced labor bond though the numbers are very few. The employees are made to sign a bond with certain terms and condition wherein if the employee wants to resign, he or she has to pay the employers a hefty amount.

The majority of the cases that the Ministry has received so far is to do with informal employment, in the sense for those who do not have business licenses, who are college going students and who got laid off due to the pandemic followed by a non-payment issue.

Forced labour is a violation. The MoLHR has received cases on the forced labor bond whereby the young people out of desperation have signed and are being penalized for breaking the labor bond.

In one of the clauses drawn between the employer and the employee, the employee shall pay an amount of Nu 45,000 if he or she leave the service on any ground prior to completion of the three years’ term after completion of the probation period. The clause further mentioned that in the event that he or she does not adhere to the above, he or she agrees to legal action.

Likewise, it was learnt that in some cases, the employees were asked to bring a guarantor whereby if the employee terminates the contract, the guarantor will be liable to pay the amount as agreed in an agreement.

Highlighting a few cases that was registered with the Ministry, an official from the Labor Department, MoLHR said there was one case wherein the original documents of the employee was kept under lock and key by the employer which is illegal by law. It was difficult, yet the Ministry managed to get back the documents.

In one case, a mother was a guarantor whereby she had to pay the amount for her child because the child chose to resign from the job before her contract period. The mother literally borrowed money to pay the employer with a worry that her child would be rejected by other company.

However, the official said that she came to the Ministry seeking help and after lots of discussions, the Ministry managed to get the refund from the employer.

“It is quite sad to see our young people signing without verifying the contract. Some of the employers made the employee sign hiding all the clauses in the agreement. This is why it is important to verify before signing any document,” the official added.

People out of frustration go to the court, but they don’t realize that they would need strong evidence to get justice. This is why they are encouraging them to mediate within rather than going to court, the official added. 

Though the numbers are very few for now, it can go up and the Ministry is working to cut it down from the very beginning, before the number flares up, the official added.

The official said, “It is a must to understand that either of the parties will have the right to terminate the contract giving a prior notice. Section 68 of the Labor Act stats that an employer shall ensure that a contract of employment with an employee specifies a notice period for the termination of the contract of not less than 30 days.”

In the past, there was bonding in most of the drayangs but they managed to intervene. The bonding issues are happening in the private sector and due to the bonding issue, the women employees in particular are vulnerable to sexual harassment.

As per section 6 of the Labour and Employment Act of Bhutan 2007, no person shall make use of, cause or permit any form of forced or compulsory labour that is extended from any person under the menace of any penalty, and for which the person has not offered himself or herself voluntarily.

In addition, the Act also states that a person who contravenes the section shall be guilty of an offence which shall be a felony of the fourth degree.

The official said, “In our case, we are totally stressing on bonding being illegal and this is why we try to resolve all the cases from the Ministry. The employees have the right to terminate the contract by giving a notice one or two months prior to their resignation.”

However, that is not there in the Contract Act. As per the Contract Act, as long as both the parties have agreed and attended 18 years and above, they are legally allowed to enter into a contract with certain terms and condition, so long as it is not against the Penal Code of Bhutan.

The official shared that there is a minor gap in between the two acts whereby in some situations, their interpretation are at times proven to be wrong. It is challenging to mediate and resolve when there are different angles to the law, the official said, and so they are in the process of proposing for an amendment of the act.

“This could be the reason why some employers are being benefited through this kind of contact by receiving the amount from employees for terminating the bond before their contract term, particularly in the cases that have been registered before the court of law,” the official further added.

However, 80 to 90 percent of cases have come in their favor. Everything depends upon the interpretation because when the big business entities have the capacity to hire big lawyers, they get defeated and that is when the protection of employees become challenging for them. 

Despite manpower shortage, the Ministry is working to address the issue of forced labour bonds and they encourage people to report it to the Ministry if they are experiencing such issues.

The Ministry of Labor and Human Resources (MoLHR) has been receiving some cases of forced labor bond though the numbers are very few. The employees are made to sign a bond with certain terms and condition wherein if the employee wants to resign, he or she has to pay the employers a hefty amount.

The majority of the cases that the Ministry has received so far is to do with informal employment, in the sense for those who do not have business licenses, who are college going students and who got laid off due to the pandemic followed by a non-payment issue.

Forced labour is a violation. The MoLHR has received cases on the forced labor bond whereby the young people out of desperation have signed and are being penalized for breaking the labor bond.

In one of the clauses drawn between the employer and the employee, the employee shall pay an amount of Nu 45,000 if he or she leave the service on any ground prior to completion of the three years’ term after completion of the probation period. The clause further mentioned that in the event that he or she does not adhere to the above, he or she agrees to legal action.

Likewise, it was learnt that in some cases, the employees were asked to bring a guarantor whereby if the employee terminates the contract, the guarantor will be liable to pay the amount as agreed in an agreement.

Highlighting a few cases that was registered with the Ministry, an official from the Labor Department, MoLHR said there was one case wherein the original documents of the employee was kept under lock and key by the employer which is illegal by law. It was difficult, yet the Ministry managed to get back the documents.

In one case, a mother was a guarantor whereby she had to pay the amount for her child because the child chose to resign from the job before her contract period. The mother literally borrowed money to pay the employer with a worry that her child would be rejected by other company.

However, the official said that she came to the Ministry seeking help and after lots of discussions, the Ministry managed to get the refund from the employer.

“It is quite sad to see our young people signing without verifying the contract. Some of the employers made the employee sign hiding all the clauses in the agreement. This is why it is important to verify before signing any document,” the official added.

People out of frustration go to the court, but they don’t realize that they would need strong evidence to get justice. This is why they are encouraging them to mediate within rather than going to court, the official added. 

Though the numbers are very few for now, it can go up and the Ministry is working to cut it down from the very beginning, before the number flares up, the official added.

The official said, “It is a must to understand that either of the parties will have the right to terminate the contract giving a prior notice. Section 68 of the Labor Act stats that an employer shall ensure that a contract of employment with an employee specifies a notice period for the termination of the contract of not less than 30 days.”

In the past, there was bonding in most of the drayangs but they managed to intervene. The bonding issues are happening in the private sector and due to the bonding issue, the women employees in particular are vulnerable to sexual harassment.

As per section 6 of the Labour and Employment Act of Bhutan 2007, no person shall make use of, cause or permit any form of forced or compulsory labour that is extended from any person under the menace of any penalty, and for which the person has not offered himself or herself voluntarily.

In addition, the Act also states that a person who contravenes the section shall be guilty of an offence which shall be a felony of the fourth degree.

The official said, “In our case, we are totally stressing on bonding being illegal and this is why we try to resolve all the cases from the Ministry. The employees have the right to terminate the contract by giving a notice one or two months prior to their resignation.”

However, that is not there in the Contract Act. As per the Contract Act, as long as both the parties have agreed and attended 18 years and above, they are legally allowed to enter into a contract with certain terms and condition, so long as it is not against the Penal Code of Bhutan.

The official shared that there is a minor gap in between the two acts whereby in some situations, their interpretation are at times proven to be wrong. It is challenging to mediate and resolve when there are different angles to the law, the official said, and so they are in the process of proposing for an amendment of the act.

“This could be the reason why some employers are being benefited through this kind of contact by receiving the amount from employees for terminating the bond before their contract term, particularly in the cases that have been registered before the court of law,” the official further added.

However, 80 to 90 percent of cases have come in their favor. Everything depends upon the interpretation because when the big business entities have the capacity to hire big lawyers, they get defeated and that is when the protection of employees become challenging for them. 

Despite manpower shortage, the Ministry is working to address the issue of forced labour bonds and they encourage people to report it to the Ministry if they are experiencing such issues.

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