Number of overtime hours limited to 6 weekly

KUWAIT CITY, May 31: Assistant Underse-cretary for Labor Sector at the Ministry of Social Affairs and Labor Mansour Al-Mansour said ministry inspectors will launch an intensive campaign starting June 1st to ensure that no laborer is working in open and uncovered areas from 12 noon until 4 pm, reports Al-Hurriya daily.

Any laborer found working in the open will be detained and his employer will be fined KD 500, he added.
Earlier, a ministerial directive was issued prohibiting laborers from working in open and uncovered areas in the afternoon from June 1st until August-end due to harsh climatic conditions.

Furthermore, a ministerial directive allows companies to extend working hours until 2 am during the holy month of Ramadan.

Minister of Social Affairs and Labor Dr Mohammed Al-Afasi issued directive limiting the number of overtime working hours in the private sector to six hours weekly and not exceeding two hours per day. Furthermore, no employee can be asked to work overtime more than 90 days per year and 180 hours annually, according to Al-Seyassah daily.

Another directive obliged employers who report the absence of one of their employees to post the copy of the report at a visible point at their workplace.

Al-Afasi issued another directive allowing the employment of women at night in some workplaces like hotels, pharmacies, press offices, banks and restaurants.

Meanwhile, the Recruitment and Manpower Department at the Civil Service Commission (CSC) will receive applications from Kuwaitis, who want to work in the government sector, on July 16, reports Al-Qabas daily quoting department director Faisal Al-Bassam.

Al-Bassam affirmed the department expects about 4,000 to 5,500 applicants, including the new graduates from applied institutes, universities and secondary schools. He revealed there are around 15,425 citizens with various fields of specialization and scientific certificates in the waiting list. He admitted the actual number of citizens, who want to work, is less than half of the total number of unemployed as most of them have rejected offers from private companies.

© Arab Times 2010