THE new headquarters of the General Federation of Bahrain Trade Unions (GFBTU), named the ‘Workers’ House’, was officially opened yesterday.

Constructed under His Majesty King Hamad’s patronage, the five-storey building in Adliya is set to ‘help create a new generation of unionists’ and allow the federation to expand research and educational initiatives.

On behalf of the King, Labour Minister Jameel Humaidan inaugurated the building in a ceremony that was attended by union leaders, Parliament and Shura Council members, and Bahrain Chamber representatives.

“With the opening of our new headquarters, we vow to multiply our initiatives to serve the labour movement,” GFBTU secretary general Abdulqader Al Shehabi said in a speech yesterday.

“We aim to make this building an axis for union work since this facility was only made a reality, thanks to decades of collective effort.

“The building will allow us to hold more training and educational courses, help hone collective bargaining skills among young members and increase occupational health and safety activities.

“We will also be able to host regional and international labour conferences, encouraging dialogue between all sides of the production chain.”

Mr Al Shehabi told the GDN that the old space had a maximum capacity of only 20 trainees at a time, whereas the new building has enough space for more than 150 trainees.

“The new headquarters can accommodate 12 researchers, who will conduct economic and social studies evaluating citizens and residents alike,” he said.

“These studies will be carried out by members of the federation, in co-operation with civil societies and international labour organisations. We will use the data to evaluate the status of workers in Bahrain, make recommendations and improve the conditions of all workers.”

The secretary general added that recently-completed studies focused on topics including the construction sector, domestic workers, the effect of value-added tax on the economic and social conditions of the population, and the classification of unemployed individuals.

Meanwhile, Mr Humaidan said in his speech that the new headquarters reflected the King’s investment in the well-being of all workers in Bahrain.

“It is an honour to be here in this great monument to the labour movement,” the minister said, adding that it was symbolic of Bahrain’s progress as the ceremony coincided with National Day celebrations.

“We have come very far since the right to form trade unions was enshrined in the Constitution in 2002,” he added.

 

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