No fees for job applications: Follow the Bangladesh Bank example

Bangladesh Bank has invited applications for the post of 225 Assistant Directors (General) without any fee from the job seekers. According to the notification of the organisation, subject to eligibility for this post, applicants may apply online through Bangladesh Bank website till 15 June free of cost. Only those who finished their bachelor degree before 15 June can apply. CV identification number, tracking number and password should be saved properly while applying. It will be required for various tasks including downloading the admit card.

This announcement of Bangladesh Bank is good news for job seekers. Unemployment in Bangladesh, especially among the educated, is relatively high. Even after getting the highest degree from the university, millions of youths have to pay a hefty fee to apply for jobs in public and private institutions, which is naturally an extra burden on them. Many of them don’t get any support from their families and therefore give tuitions to arrange the application fees. We welcome the initiative of Bangladesh Bank to make the application process without fee. While others failed to realise the hardship of job seekers, Bangladesh Bank did.

Fees are charged at an unusual rate from job seekers. The fee ranges from Tk 50 to Tk 2,000. Bangladesh Small and Cottage Industries Corporation charges application fee for three posts at Tk. 800, 500 and 300. The Civil Aviation Authority of Bangladesh charges Tk 224 and Tk 560 for the two posts. Application fee for line crew level-1 of Bangladesh Rural Electrification Board is TK 100. Application fee for Metrorail project is Tk 500, for Bangabandhu University of Science and Technology Tk 1200, for General Insurance Corporation Tk 500 and 300 respectively. Application fee for Navy is Tk 700. The postal department has the lowest fee of Tk 112 and 56.

Government policy makers brag of Digital Bangladesh. If that is the case, then why is a large sum of money being charged from unemployed youth in the name of job application? Selection of applications of job seekers and taking exams are part of the responsibility of the officials of the concerned organisation. They cannot get a separate reward for this. When the application is accepted online, there is no additional official cost either.

The job seekers' demand not to take a fee has been reported in the media many times. But the concerned institutions and the government did not take this into cognizance. Bangladesh Bank has proved that it is possible to take admission tests without any fee by inviting applications for the post of Assistant Director free of cost. If Bangladesh Bank can do it, why can't other government institutions?

Government agencies and organisations that have not yet become self-sufficient in information technology, their capacity needs to be increased immediately. It is quite unacceptable that the authorities will talk big about digital Bangladesh yet conduct all the works manually. No fee can be charged from job seekers. If the government institutions adopt this, the private organisations will also be forced to follow. Stop harassing the unemployed youths with application fees.