The Bhutanese Leading the way.
Sixteen youth who had complained to the labour ministry of not being placed into jobs in India through the overseas employment programme were offered jobs in Marriot Hotel in Kuwait by the ministry through the Redeployment Programme. Only 5 of 16 youth who appeared for the job interview were selected.
“The ministry had signed a contract with a company called Alfresco Solution, an IT enabled agent, based in Noida, India, and it was agreed the company would provide training and placement,” labour minister Ngeema Sangay Tshempo said. “ The training was to be provided in IT enabled services and the youth were to be guaranteed jobs with minimum remuneration of Rs. 15,000 a month with free accommodation.”
The minister said the ministry sent 64 class 12 graduates to India in the first batch of the Guaranteed Overseas Employment Programme in January and 86 in the second batch in April this year.
The ministry received complaints from the second batch. The agent was able to find jobs for most of the youth but not in the pay scale as reflected in the contract and few of them were yet to be placed. The 16 youth who reported to the ministry was among those yet to be placed.
“As per our law, if any youth who has been placed into job under GEP seeks ministry’s support or assistance, it shall render support to the individual only once but in this case, the ministry decided to help because the agent is at fault, deceiving our poor youth, so we decided to help them by redeploying them in hotels in Kuwait,” the minister said.
The Overseas Employment Programme has been running since 2013 after the government gave the directives to the labour ministry to start the overseas program and is now working with 11 countries.
