Manpower Agencies to Halt Worker Deployment and Close Offices Starting Monday Amid Unfulfilled Demands
The Nepal Foreign Employment Association has decided to suspend the process of sending workers abroad from tomorrow until their 15-point demands, including the adjustment of service fees, are met. Association President Dekbahadur Khatri emphasized that the main demand is the regulation of service fees and stated that offices of manpower agencies will remain closed until these demands are addressed. Pitambar Ghimire, spokesperson for the Ministry of Labour, Employment and Social Security, reported that talks have been positive and the ministry continues discussions to resolve the issues. (31 Shrawan, Kathmandu)
Manpower agencies have announced they will cease operations related to sending workers overseas starting from September 1 (1 Bhadra), as no consensus was reached on the government ultimatum. The Nepal Foreign Employment Association had previously presented 15 demands, including revisions to service fees. With no progress on these issues, the association has resolved to shut down manpower offices nationwide beginning tomorrow. President Khatri noted that all agencies will follow a pre-planned schedule to lock their offices and suspend worker deployment.
On July 22 (7 Shrawan), the association held a special meeting of manpower businesses to formally submit the 15-point demands to the government, urging concrete actions. These include setting standardized service fees payable by foreign employment workers and rescinding punitive measures imposed by the Department of Foreign Employment. The association has pursued negotiations and protest actions concurrently. A preliminary meeting with the Ministry of Youth, Labour and Employment took place last Friday, where the agencies presented their demands and ministry officials shared updates on progress and action plans.
“Our primary demand is service fees; though amendments to other laws are important, the government must take a firm stand on the service fee issue,” President Khatri stated. He also mentioned preparations to hold further discussions tomorrow with an aim to present conclusions to the minister. Ministry spokesperson Pitambar Ghimire expressed optimism that the initial talks created an environment conducive to agreement and that concrete outcomes are expected by tomorrow.
Regarding the manpower agencies’ announcement to halt deploying workers abroad from tomorrow, spokesperson Ghimire expressed confidence that such a drastic step would be avoided as dialogue continues. “Since the dialogue is moving forward constructively, we believe the agencies will not take harsh measures, and a conclusion is likely to be reached by tomorrow,” he said. With both the agencies and government sharing responsibilities, the ministry aims to play a coordinating role, expecting that the planned actions will be resolved following Monday’s meeting.
