36pc of the unemployed seek jobs through relatives, friends: BBS survey
Unemployed youths most often look for jobs through relatives and friends as they believe that friends and relatives are the ones who can help them get the jobs they desire.
As a result, family and friends are considered the most trusted sources for getting jobs.
According to the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS) Labour Force Survey, around 36 per cent of job seekers request help from relatives and friends to find employment.
In other words, roughly one in three unemployed persons seeks jobs through personal networks. Meanwhile, about 26 per cent search for jobs through newspaper advertisements, and around 12 per cent directly approach various organisations in person.
This picture emerges from the recently published BBS Labour Force Survey 2024.
The survey details various job-seeking or employment methods. For example, nearly 9 per cent of unemployed persons apply directly to institutions, while 5.5 per cent decide whether to apply after seeing job advertisements. About 3.5 per cent try through direct interviews.
Other job-seeking methods highlighted in the BBS survey include submitting résumés to professional networks, registering at government employment centers, registering at private job centers, standing on the street in search of jobs, seeking financial assistance to start a business, requesting land for business purposes, and applying for business licenses, among others.
A senior BBS official told Prothom Alo that unemployed people look for jobs in many different ways—they just want work by any means. Their first approach is usually to relatives and friends, as they believe these close connections can provide support. The practice of asking relatives for job help has been a long-standing trend in Bangladesh.
How many are unemployed?
According to the BBS Labour Force Survey, at the end of 2024 the number of unemployed in Bangladesh stood at 2.6 million. Dhaka division has the highest number, with 687,000 unemployed. Next come Chattogram and Rajshahi divisions.
Division-wise figures show that after Dhaka (687,000), Chattogram has 584,000, Rajshahi 357,000, Khulna 331,000, Sylhet 216,000, Rangpur 206,000, Barishal 139,000, and Mymensingh 104,000 unemployed people.
What is the definition of unemployment?
According to the International Labour Organization (ILO), a person who works at least one hour a week for wages cannot be considered unemployed. Those who have been seeking work over the past month and, in the last week, did not get even one hour of paid work are counted as unemployed. This is the international standard definition.
However, in Bangladesh’s reality, it is impossible to survive on just one hour of work per week. Around 10 million people are underemployed in the sense that they do not get the kind of work they want. These individuals are considered the “disguised unemployed.”