Sixty Bangladeshi migrants boarded a flight to Malaysia this week through the Bangladesh Overseas Employment and Services Limited (BOESL) program. The transfer marks the first phase of an initiative to meet Malaysia’s demand for workers in the construction and tourism sectors.

But while the Government of Bangladesh presents this as a success, the UN Human Rights Office of the High Commissioner (OHCHR) warns that the workers’ long, uncertain wait points to a much deeper crisis. They are part of the 17,777 migrants who completed all required procedures last year but due to complications, were left behind. The situation underscores a system lacking proper oversight, increasing the risk of exploitation and debt bondage among migrant workers.

Debt bondage, false job promises, and more

According to UN special rapporteurs, fraudulent recruitment and exploitation remain “widespread and systematic” among Bangladeshi migrant workers in Malaysia. Thousands recruited for jobs remain stranded at home or face severe exploitation abroad after paying recruitment fees five times more than the official limits. Experts said:

Some migrants have reportedly been asked to make additional payments, while others have been reassigned to jobs without their consent. We have also been informed that a small number of recruitment agencies operate as a closed syndicate sustained by corruption, lack of transparency, and systemic exploitation,

In a recent press release, UN experts also allege that migrants experience false job promises, contract discrepancies, and pressure to sign false declarations about fees paid during the recruitment process. Additionally, they face passport confiscation by employers and publication of personal information without consent.

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