683 underage workers migrated for domestic work - COPE reveals

A Parliamentary Committee has revealed that 683 underage workers have migrated for domestic work between May 2023 and June 2024.

 

This was revealed at the meeting of the Committee on Public Enterprises (COPE) which met recently at the Parliament Complex.

 

It was also revealed that the Sri Lanka Bureau of Foreign Employment (SLBFE) had incurred a loss of Rs. 631.1 million as training revenue by sending 28,165 first-time migrant domestic workers without providing mandatory residential training.

 

It revealed that the SLBFE had granted approval for recruitment agencies to send domestic workers abroad on tourist visas and that 4,942 workers had left the country under tourist visas.

 

COPE Chair MP Nishantha Samaraweera said a COPE sub-committee will be appointed to conduct an investigation into the Sri Lanka Bureau of Foreign Employment (SLBFE).