Seoul to recruit 7000 Bangladeshis by 2009

---

Naim-Ul-KarimbrSouth Korea will recruit over 7000 skilled and semi skilled workers from Bangladesh in the next 16 months, the country's ambassador told the FE on Monday.brSuk-Bum Park said around 3000 Bangladeshi would get jobs in the East Asian economic giant this year while the rest in 2009. brWe have growing employment opportunities in the country's construction, textile, fisheries, agriculture, electronics and machinery sectors, Mr. Park said. brWe'll recruit around 3000 workers under the first 'Employment Permit System (EPS)' system this year. In 2009, the number of recruitment will be around 4000, he said. brAsia's fourth largest economy has already recruited more than a thousand Bangladeshi under the newly launched 'Employment Permit System (EPS)' system, with salary starting from Tk85,000 a month. brOfficials said under the EPS, South Korea will recruit 50,000 skilled manpower from 14 countries, including Bangladesh, to make up for its growing shortages of labour force in the country.brWe need huge number of overseas workers as the population growth in South Korea has become stagnant. There are jobs available in almost every sector, Mr. Park said.brThe ambassador said his government has launched the EPS to help the local companies recruit skilled manpower in a transparent process and also to protect the rights of the overseas workers.brUnder the EPS, an overseas worker has to enlist his name online, pass Korean language proficiency test and prove his skill for the desired job. brHuman Resources Development office of the Korean labour ministry conduct the selection process. Once selected a Bangladesh worker will have to bear only air travel cost, which is around US$850 dollar. brThe EPS was launched after Seoul and Dhaka signed an agreement, paving the way for recruitment of skilled Bangladeshi workers by South Korean private companies. brThe agreement protects the interest and rights of Bangladeshi workforce in South Korea, where around 18,000 Bangladeshis are now employed and the new deal will facilitate employment of another 10,000 workers within 2010.br