World Labor Day 2019 – Nepal Yet to Make Progress with Labor Management

The world celebrates Labor Day on May 01, 2019, which marks the 130^th International May Day. This year’s Labor Day theme is ‘Sustainable Pension for all: The Role of Social Partners’.

Labor Day holds a special significance in Nepal, especially when the government is making efforts to retain its labor force.

According to the International Labor Organization, the country contributes nearly 1.4 million laborers to the international job market per year.

Out of the 30 million South Asian workers that leave to the gulf and other foreign destinations, Nepali workers travel to destinations including Bangladesh, China, Myanmar, and Sri Lanka through India for foreign jobs.

In recent years, the flow of Nepali workers has shifted to Africa, Europe, Malaysia, Gulf and USA.

According to Nepal’s Central Bureau of Statistics, some seven million Nepalis are employed, of which two million are daily wage earners.

As per the National Planning Commission (NPC), over 500,000 workers enter Nepali labor market annually to look for jobs and unfortunately, only 150,000 of them find jobs in the internal labor market. The remaining workers are forced to look for jobs abroad.

According to government records, around 600,000 workers leave Nepal for foreign employment every year. Some 4.4 million youths left the country for foreign jobs between FY 2063-64 and FY 2075-76.

Nepali Migrants remittance contribution amounts to 29 percent of Nepal’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

The government has been constantly working to improve the situation of workers in Nepal.

Here are some of the major efforts made by the government to ensure that the Nepali workforce receives enough opportunities within the country.

• PM Employment Program – The government launched the PM Employment Program this year with the aim to create job opportunities in Nepal and end youth dependence on foreign jobs. The programs aims to cover unemployed people between the age group of 18-51 years and assign them jobs as per the qualifications and interest areas.
• Amendment of Foreign Employment Act– The Government of Nepal decided to revise the existing Foreign Employment Act of 2007 to remove the practice of collecting service charge and promotional costs from Nepali migrant workers.
• Labor Act and Labor Regulations 2074 BS – In 2074, the government introduced the Labor Act to ensure social security to all, end labor exploitation and respectable remunerations among others. The Ministry for Labor and Social Security worked to create minimum wage to workers, provide facilities of pension and gratuity through the Social Security Fund and unemployment allowance.

Nepal PM Oli on World Labor Day 2019

अन्तर्राष्ट्रिय श्रमिक दिवसका अवसरमा सम्पूर्ण नेपाली दिदीवहिनी एवं दाजुभाइहरुमा हार्दिक शुभकामना व्यक्त गर्दछु । असल श्रम सम्बन्ध विकासका लागि हामीले योगदानमा आधारित सामाजिक सुरक्षा लागू गरेका छौं । स्वदेशमै आत्मसम्मानपूर्ण श्रमको अवसर सिर्जना गर्न सरकार क्रियाशील छ ।

— K P Sharma Oli (@kpsharmaoli) May 1, 2019

Let’s hope that the government is able to fulfill its vision of creating employment opportunities within the country.