Bangladesh 2016

As part of Canada's Seasonal Agricultural Workers Program (SAWP), Canada ensures that seasonal migrant agricultural workers are paid at the level of, or above, local minimum wage and provides other guarantees.

The employer must pay a wage equal to the highest provincial minimum wage, or the rate that Human Resources and Skills Development Canada (HRSDC) determines to be the prevailing wage for the type of agricultural work being performed, or the rate being paid by the employer to Canadian workers performing the same type of agricultural work.

The agreements established a clearly defined recruitment process which must be followed by all parties, including by private recruitment agencies (PRAs). They specify that the Canadian employers should first inform their domestic Employment and Immigration Departments about the availability of jobs and seek permission to recruit. If the permission is granted, the Departments then relays the information to the Philippines Department of Labour and Employment which in turn alerts licensed PRAs in the Philippines to the recruitment opportunities.

New Zealand launched the Recognized Seasonal Employer (RSE) programme in 2007 to fill labour shortages in the horticulture and viticulture industries. The RSE began with an initial annual cap of 5,000 workers but that was raised to 8,000 for the 2009 season and 9,000 in 2015. Migrants are mostly recruited the Pacific island countries.

The Pakistan Remittance Initiative (PRI) was launched in 2009 by the State Bank of Pakistan, the Ministry of Overseas Pakistanis and the Ministry of Finance for the purpose of (a) facilitating and supporting a faster, cheaper, convenient and more efficient flow of remittances, and (b) to create investment opportunities in Pakistan for overseas Pakistanis. The PRI has encouraged the financial sector to provide greater commitment to remittance services.

The agreement aims to meet the temporary seasonal needs of Canadian agricultural producers during peak harvesting and planting periods. Under this Seasonal Agricultural Workers Scheme the government of Trinidad and Tobago established public authorities in Trinidad and Tobago and in Toronto, Canada to oversee recruitment and placement.

The Philippine Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE), through department order No. 130 (2013) has regulated that no fees or other charges for recruitment, placement or providing employment can be placed on seafarers.

The India Emigration (Amendment) Rules 2009 provide protections regarding recruitment of foreign workers, including limiting the maximum amount for service charges, requiring the registration of recruitment agents, and preventing licensed agents from employing sub-agents to conduct their business.

UAE law includes the prohibition of accepting or demanding payment from workers whether before or after recruitment (Article 18 of UAE Labour Law No. 8, 1980).
The provision stipulates:
"It is not permissible for any licensed labour agent or supplier to demand or accept from any worker whether before or after his recruitment, any commission or material reward in consideration for arranging such recruitment, nor may he obtain from him any expenses except as may be decided or approved by the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs.

The Joint Migration and Development Initiative (JMDI) is a global inter-agency programme funded by the European Union and the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation. It focuses on the local dimension of migrants’ contribution to development and aims to maximize the potential of migration for local development. To achieve this, the JMDI provides technical and financial support to up-scale existing locally-led migration and development initiatives across 15 projects in eight target countries: Costa Rica, Ecuador, El Salvador, Morocco, Nepal, Philippines, Senegal and Tunisia.

On the 12th of February 2016, the Diaspora Relations Bureau (BRD) of the State Chancellery of Moldova, in partnership with the International Organization for Migration (IOM Moldova) and the support of the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC), launched the Diaspora Engagement Hub – a new program of thematic grants for Moldovan citizens abroad, including diaspora associations and initiative groups.