Hi-tech measures to stop job swindles in the Middle East

Sri Lankans seeking jobs in the Middle East will now face electronic fingerprinting and biometric scanning prior to departure to crack down on rampant fraud and other irregularities in the recruitment trade, a senior official said yesterday.

Scanning devices would be installed at the departure and arrival areas of the Bandaranaike International Airport (BIA) and at all Sri Lankan diplomatic missions in the Middle Eastern countries where there were large numbers of Sri Lankan workers, Sri Lanka Foreign Employment Bureau (SLFEB) Chairman Amal Senadhilankara said.

He said the new scheme would be enforced from September 1 and that stake holders in the foreign employment industry, particularly recruiting agents had already been informed.

“This screening is necessary because of the growing number of complaints of fraud and other irregularities such as workers flouting

their contracts and getting involved in crime and other illegal activities in the host country,” he said. Mr. Senadhilankara warned the offenders would be blacklisted and prevented from getting overseas jobs again.

The chairman said thousands of workers, mainly female domestics, were known to have broken their contracts with their employers and later sought refuge in Lankan diplomatic missions.