Migrant Rights

Saudi, Bangaldesh and others elected to ILO Governing body

News that Saudi Arabia had joined the International Labour Organisation (ILO) governing body shocked many observers last week, drawing many ...

The UAE’s Federal National Council passed the latest draft law on domestic workers last week. It now requires final approval from President Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan. If enforced, the law would offer the most progressive regulations for domestic workers in the region.

Qatar released new statistics concerning its Expat Grievances Committee this week. Expats whose travel requests are denied by their employer must appeal to the committee in order to leave the country. Over 761 appeals were received between December 13 and February 15, 213 of which were rejected, 485 approved, and the remaining in consideration.

Kuwait’s Ministry of Interior Affairs announced that at least 29,000 expats were deported in 2016 – about 80 persons a day. This is a meaningful increase from the 25,000 deported in 2015. A Ministry official cast these statistics in a positive light, claiming that they “show undoubtedly that we have made deportation processes much faster.”

In the wake of low oil prices and large budget defects, Saudi joins other Gulf countries in considering taxes on expat remittances. The most recent proposal suggests a 6% tax on remittances for the first year of an expat’s residency, and 2% for the five years following.

Expatriates in Kuwait will not be allowed into Kuwait’s airports, except for traveling. The MOI says expats are causing a congestion.

A recent decision by Kuwait’s Ministry of Interior will exempt sponsors from paying return airfare for domestic workers reported as absconding (‘runaways’), or who have any other criminal charges against them.  The decision also increases punishments for individuals who hire or shelter ‘absconded’ workers, and will force these employers to pay for return tickets.

Expatriate teachers in Kuwait are protesting a decision to cut their benefits, while construction workers are protesting the failure to investigate a death on a worksite. Another group of Bangladeshi workers are protesting in front of their embassy, demanding the residency permits that their sponsoring company failed to provide them.

Bahrain is contemplating a ‘flexible’ work permit that will allow those without legal visa to work for multiple employers.

India places curbs on recruitment of female migrants, making it mandatory for all female migrant workers with an ECR stamp on their passport, and nurses, to be recruited only through seven approved recruitment agencies.

Kuwait Society for Human Rights (KSHR) publishes booklet for domestic workers in six languages.

Indonesia’s ministry of manpower has denied recent reports that the government will soon lift its ban on domestic workers to the region.  Several local newspapers had reported that Saudi and Indonesia cemented a deal to protect the rights of new recruits.

UAE companies can’t afford AC buses or to pay their workers.

Saudi Arabia has lifted a six-year ban on the recruitment of Bangladeshi workers. The move comes even as the Kingdom struggles to deal with tens of thousands of migrant workers stranded and starving, without pay or sustenance.

Kuwaiti press has recently reported on the case of an Asian domestic worker who was pushed out of a driving vehicle by her sponsor.

Indian domestic worker brutally tortured in Saudi.

Kuwait became the first Gulf country to set a standardized minimum wage for domestic workers on Thursday. The decision comes as part of wider efforts to regulate the domestic worker industry, though domestic workers remain excluded from the labour law.