Kuwait - The Ministry of Interior has slapped a ban on recruitment of domestic workers from Nepal as the latter are facing intractable problems owing to the non-existence of their embassy in Kuwait, says Hashem Majed, the Chairman of Al-Huqooq International Company. Speaking to the Arab Times on Tuesday, Majed went on to add that the most common problems faced by the Nepali workers include non-payment of salaries, employer abuses, among others and that the workers were in essence left to fend for themselves. Kuwait is home to some 30,000 Nepalis and a majority of whom are employed in the domestic sector. "The problems encountered by Nepali workers are insurmountable. Many Nepali workers could not avail of the amnesty as they were unable to secure out passes in a timely manner. There are many Nepali workers who wish to return home but are not in a position to obtain temporary travel documents. Al-Huqooq has been providing legal assistance to Nepali workers whenever required."
Embassy
Majed said there is an exigent need to establish a Nepali embassy in Kuwait owing to presence of large number of Nepalis in the country. "Presently, Nepali domestic workers have to send their passports all the way to Saudi Arabia for renewal, and they end up paying more money for the courier service compared to the renewal fee. I hope the Nepali authorities will look into the matter and take appropriate measures." To a question whether Indian maids are being paid a minimum wage of KD 75, as recently announced by the Indian government, Majed observed that the Indian maids were still being paid a KD 45 salary, even as the minimum wage was applicable to all GCC countries except Kuwait. "As far as Kuwait is concerned, there are laws in place that safeguard rights of workers. In addition, all new Indian domestic workers coming to Kuwait are being insured and as such we do not see the need for a minimum wage here."
Noting that the demand for the Indonesian domestic workers had not fallen even though the Indonesian government set a minimum wage of KD 50 for its workers last month, he said, on an average, 2,000 Indonesian workers are recruited on a monthly basis and that this number is the largest compared to other nationalities. Majed said that there has been a decline in the recruitment of Filipino maids after Manila set a minimum wage of KD 120 for its workers. "Around 700 to 800 Filipino maids are being hired by the recruitment agencies as against 2,000 earlier." Majed parried a query when asked whether Filipino maids were coming through the legal channel. He noted that around 800 to 900 Indian domestic workers are recruited every month while the number of Ethiopian maids hired is about 900.
He observed that Ministry of Social Affairs and Labour has allocated KD 50,000 towards the repatriation of runaway maids and will set in motion the procedure soon. "This is a good move by the ministry and I call upon it to take such measures on a regular basis to help embassies in tackling problems of the domestic sector. The ministry should also take it upon itself to obtain the rights of the runaway maids and should not deport them without securing their rights." Replying to a question whether violence against domestic workers was on the rise, he said he was aware of the latest figures and expressed hope that cases would drop significantly once the ministry of interior constructs a permanent shelter for runaway maids.
Francis A. Clifford Cardozo
© Arab Times 2007
