Guidelines for sending trainees to Japan okayed (Kantipur Daily)
Kathmandu, Dec 08 – The Ministry of Labour and Transport Management on Monday approved the much-awaited guidelines for sending Nepali industrial trainee workers to Japan under the Japan Interna-tional Training Cooperation Organisation (JITCO).“We have approved the guidelines today,” said Mohamad Aftab Alam, Minister for Labour and Transport Management. “Now the designated Nepali recruiting agencies can send workers after receiving orders from Japanese firms.”
He added that the selected industrial trainee workers would have to pay Rs. 50,000 to the recruiting agencies as promotional fee. Beside this charge, candidates will have to pay for pre-departure insurance and training and contribute to the Foreign Employment Welfare Fund. It is estimated that the pre-departure costs will come to around Rs. 63,000.
“The hiring Japanese companies will pay the airfare and visa fee,” said Purna Chandra Bhattarai, joint secretary at the Labour Ministry. He said that in special cases workers would have to pay the airfare and visa fee, but that should be notified by the Japanese Embassy in Nepal. The Labour Ministry has selected 171 recruiting agencies including the Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industry to send Nepali industrial trainees to Japanese firms.
Labour Minister Alam said that the ministry would distribute certificates to the selected recruiting agencies within a week after which they can start seeking orders from Japanese companies.
“In other words, you can say that the process of sending Nepali industrial trainee workers in a transparent way has started from today,” he said.
As per the guidelines, trainees having at least two years of work experience in industry, hotels, agro industry, cooperatives can get a chance to work as industrial trainee workers in Japan. Potential trainee workers should also obtain training in Japanese language and information about Japanese culture and the existing legal provisions.
“If any agency is found collecting fees against the guidelines, its license will be cancelled,” said Minister Alam. He said that a committee led by the Labour Ministry would be formed to monitor the sending process.
Source: Kantipur Daily
