Bangladesh News

The Kuwaiti government on Monday announced monthly minimum wage for foreign workers — KWD 40 (Tk 10,306) for unskilled workers and KWD 70 (Tk 18,035) for security guards.

Meanwhile, Kuwaiti authorities yesterday deported 63 more Bangladeshi workers, bringing the total to 757 so far. The deportees have been charged with participating in and instigating strikes. Many of the deportees however denied their involvement with the strikes and said they had been arrested and beaten up before being deported.

The decision of adopting a minimum wage for the expatriate workers came following last week’s violent demonstrations by thousands of Asian workers, mainly from Bangladesh, over pay increase.

The decision taken by the Kuwaiti cabinet will be applicable to workers who are employed by companies that are operating on government contracts.

Hundreds and thousands of foreign cleaners and security guards are likely to benefit from the new measure, according to a report published in the Kuwait Times yesterday.

Kuwait adopted the minimum wage a day after Minister for Social Affairs and Labour Bader Al-Duwailah Duwailah met with the human rights committee of the country’s National Assembly to discuss issues related to expatriate workers and the recent strike staged by them.

Around 2.4 lakh Bangladeshis work in the Gulf state and about 80 percent of them make the lowest wage.

Bangladeshi workers who supported the workers’ strike last week said each of them had been receiving only KWD 20 a month or less although according to the contracts they had signed each worker is supposed to receive KWD 50 per month.

State Minister for Cabinet Affairs Faisal Al-Hajji in the meantime warned companies of stern action including freezing their recruitment files and referring them to court for legal action if they fail to abide by the decision.

Duwailah vowed to wage a relentless war on visa traders, regardless of their social status. He also said a number of committees were formed to investigate abuse of expatriate workers.

Kuwaiti lawmaker Jamaan Al-Harbash called on the government to announce a comprehensive plan to end the visa trading, saying that the government measures has so far been ineffective in resolving the expatriate workers’ issues.

Acknowledging the urgency to formulate a law to safeguard workers’ rights, he said members of parliament will submit a request for holding a special session at the beginning of the holy month of Ramadan to discuss government measures regarding labour issues.

Harbash also called on the government to take stern actions against individuals and companies that are involved in visa trade and violate workers’ rights.

A group of influential people have been making money through illegal means with the connivance of officials in the ministries in exchange for favours, he observed.

Meanwhile, the parliament’s human rights committee has introduced a bill laying down jail terms of up to 15 years for offences including forced labour, worker abuse or sexual exploitation of maids, reports the Kuwait Times.

Ali Al-Baghli, head of Kuwait Society for Human Rights, said there was a good chance the law would be passed. “It is a good idea to present a local law that prohibits human trafficking because Kuwait’s reputation has reached a low level,” he said.

In June, a US State Department report on forced labour and sex trade placed Kuwait in the ‘worst offender’ category alongside fellow Gulf states Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Oman.