Opinion Forum

Barun Bashyal

The statistical data of the Department of Immigration shows that around two to three thousands of youths everyday in Nepal leave for foreign employment as they do not find any opportunities within the country. With teary eyes and a heavy heart but also with the hope of earning a lot of money, they choose it that way.

It’s disheartening that thousands of youths burdened with loans have to leave the country for employment, while our Honorable Ministers exchange greetings on International Labor Day. The Constitution of Nepal 2015, Part 4 (h) provides policies relating to Basic Needs of Citizens: (1) To prepare human resources that are competent, competitive, ethical, and devoted to national interests, while making education scientific, technical, vocational, skill-oriented, employment and people-oriented. However, we won’t be wrong if we say that this policy is not implemented  successfully.  The 135th International Labors’ Day carries the slogan of  ‘Decent Work, Respect for Workers: Our Campaign’ to advocate for the protection and promotion of the rights of workers around the world.

What do the statistics show?

The financial report 2022/2023 published by the Ministry Of Labor, Employment and Social Security shows that 92,420 people have received an average of 78 days of employment under the Prime Minister Employment Program. On the other hand, the Ministry of Immigration has revealed that out of a total 16,03, 836 who left the country, 8,08,415 were gone for foreign employment. Similarly, according to the 2023 March report of the Department of Foreign Employment, a total of 70,933 skilled and unskilled Nepali citizens have obtained work permits for foreign employment.

The  Constitution of Nepal 2015, Article 34 (Right relating to Health) :  Sub Article 2 states that, every laborer shall have the right to appropriate remuneration, facilities and contributory social security. Having said that, the wages are not increased along with the expensiveness and inflation, also the social security scheme does not include all the workers. Additionally, workers in the informal sector, people engaged in foreign employment, bonded laborers are forced to work with great risks. According to the statistics of the Foreign Employment Board, 1208 people who died abroad and 389 people who suffered disability or seriously ill while working abroad were provided with financial assistance in the financial year 2022/2023.

Likewise, the statistics show that 112 family members were provided with treatment expenses, 2956 children were provided with scholarships, 818 people were helped in dead body transport and 167 were rescued. The reality of three to four among those who go for foreign employment dying every day clearly shows that decent work and respect for workers has been clearly hindered.  Although, Sub-article 4 of Article 18 in the Constitution of Nepal states that : No discrimination shall be made on the ground of gender with regard to remuneration and social security for the same work,  Nepali society lacks the practice of giving equal wages for equal work till date. Similarly, no person shall be subjected to any form of untouchability or discrimination in any private and public places on grounds of his or her origin, caste, tribe, community, profession, occupation or physical condition as written in Sub-article 1 of Article 24. However, the loop of discriminating workers on the basis of their profession and business seems never ending. Since Nepal became a member of the International Labor Organization in 1966, it  has ratified eleven ILO Conventions, including seven out of ten fundamental Conventions

The Constitution of Nepal 2015, Article (29) provides with Right against Exploitation under which Sub-article 3 : “No one shall be subjected to trafficking nor shall one be held in slavery or servitude”, Sub-article 4: “No one shall be forced to work against his or her will. Provided that nothing shall be deemed to prevent the making of law by the State requiring citizens to perform compulsory service for public purposes” are mentioned. Despite this provision, there is no significant improvement in the standard of living of the bonded laborers and Haruwa Charuwa (The haruwa–charuwa system is a forced-labor system based on debt bondage, prevalent in the agricultural sector of the eastern Terai region in Nepal.) Every citizen shall have the right to employment and every citizen shall have the right to choose employment according to Article 33.

However, all the citizens have not been able to get the job of their choice and are not guaranteed the opportunities to work as mentioned by the policies of the nation. No significant progress has been seen despite the efforts to enhance the skills and professionalism of the labor force, as well as to encourage domestic employment. The principles laid down in the concept of dignified labor ensuring the fundamental rights of all workers through social security coverage, eliminating all forms of exploitation such as child labor, and establishing sustainable relationships between laborers and employers while encouraging worker participation in management are often overshadowed. Furthermore, plans to make the foreign employment free from exploitation, safe and organized, to guarantee employment rights, and utilization of the skills and resources gained abroad to benefit the country’s economy have not been successfully implemented.