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Regional News
The Bangladesh Caterers Association (BCA), UK Ltd. has been playing a vital role in promoting a ateral relation between Bangladesh and Great Britain since its inception in 1960. The Association is now roud to represent approximately 12,000 Bangladeshi restaurants and takeaways employing over 85 ousand employees with a turnover of £3.5 billion.
The Bangladesh Caterers Association (BCA), UK Ltd. has been playing a vital role in promoting a ateral relation between Bangladesh and Great Britain since its inception in 1960. The Association is now roud to represent approximately 12,000 Bangladeshi restaurants and takeaways employing over 85 ousand employees with a turnover of £3.5 billion.
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Restaurant News
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Community News
The Bangladesh Caterers Association (BCA), UK Ltd. has been playing a vital role in promoting a ateral relation between Bangladesh and Great Britain since its inception in 1960. The Association is now roud to represent approximately 12,000 Bangladeshi restaurants and takeaways employing over 85 ousand employees with a turnover of £3.5 billion.
The Bangladesh Caterers Association (BCA), UK Ltd. has been playing a vital role in promoting a ateral relation between Bangladesh and Great Britain since its inception in 1960. The Association is now roud to represent approximately 12,000 Bangladeshi restaurants and takeaways employing over 85 ousand employees with a turnover of £3.5 billion.
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BCA President attends Migration Advisory Committee (MAC) Stakeholder Forum Meeting
BCA President Mr Bajloor Rashid attended a meeting of a Stakeholder Forum hosted by the Migration Advisory Committee (MAC) on Friday 30 January 2009 at the Home Office building, 2 Marsham Street, London SW1P 4DF. The Migration Advisory Committee provides transparent, independent and evidence-based advice to the Government on where skilled occupation shortages exist that can sensibly be filled by migration. This is for use alongside Tier 2 of the new Points Based System for immigration. The Committee produced its first recommendations in September, which the Government subsequently accepted. And MAC included Skilled Chef in its report, which was a long time demand from BCA.
The Stakeholder Forum is a means by which the MAC can gather together a representative spread of views and opinions from across sectors and different parts of the UK in order to inform and guide it in drawing up recommendations for the shortage lists. From Bangladeshi entrepreneurs, BCA is the only representative body to be included in the stakeholders forum. BCA President Mr Bajloor Rashid was aided by community activist Ms Rohema Meah .
After exchange of pleasantries Mr Bajloor Rashid thanked Professor David Metcalfe, the MAC chair for being present at the BCA Annual Dinner Event at Hilton Parklane in last November. He then gave a brief description on the activities of BCA. Mr Rashid said Times have not been easy for London restaurants in recent months as the credit crisis and a deepening recession have hit everyone, from ordinary city workers to highly paid bankers. He further added that Curry industry is a British industry BCA surveys showed that there was a vacancy of 30,000 skilled workers in the restaurants owned by the Bangladeshi restaurateurs. He thanked the MAC and UK govt for the inclusion of Skilled Chef in the Shortage Occupation List.
Professor Metcalfe explained MAC’s position on this regard and shared that the Shortage Occupation List might be revised in a few months time and there was no guarantee that those occupations already included would remain their permanently. The economic condition and the actual need in the market may lead MAC to recommend some occupations to be scrapped from th e list. To be able to remain in the revised list an occupation or occupation sector must produce new robust evidence to claim a place in the SOL.
Mr Bajloor Rashid opposed any idea of scrapping Skilled Chef from the SOL as little could be done by curry sector since the inception of Point Based System and inclusion of curry in the SOL. Because it was of little worth as the corresponding pre-conditions made it difficult to bring workers from outside UK using SOL list. The restaurant owners are facing all the difficult phases of earning licences, their own licences as well sponsorship licences for the future employees and the whole process was really time consuming. Restaurant owners feel that too many information and documents are required for the Licensing. UKBA is acting as if they are the regulatory body of the restaurant industry. As a condition of the license, HR compliance requirement is too stringent to be maintained by small business.
Only months ago BCA produced the evidence in the form of a research document and MAC was convinced with that document which envisaged tat there was a vacancy of 30,000 skilled workers in the curry sector. The staff shortage is still there as no staff could be brought from abroad in the past few months. He demanded that curry sector should remain in the SOL list for at least another two years.
Ms Rohema Meah added that BCA was always willing to recruit from within UK, but there is no facility here wherefrom trained curry-cooks could be produced. It was true there was no dearth of hospitality training institutes here but there was hardly any single institute that was exclusively focused on the need of curry restaurants. She further pointed that to increase the employability of the homegrown British Bangladeshis and to increase their level of expertise, BCA was planning to establish a curry-training institute in UK. But BCA needs an alternate source of workers until such an institutions is established and graduates are coming out to take over.
Professor Metcalfe listened to the BCA leaders very attentively and passionately. He appreciated BCA leader’s concerns and assured that he would do his best to find out a way so that ethnic catering sector could be included in any revised SOL.
The meeting was held in a very cordial atmosphere and BCA leaders were very much pleased by the attention given to the curry sector by the MAC officials.
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