KUWAIT CITY, April 5: The Ministry of Social Affairs and Labor will not implement the new national manpower percentage on micro-companies with less than 25 workers, reports Al-Shahid daily quoting a reliable source. According to the source, companies with 24 workers and above should comply with the directive; otherwise, they will pay KD100 fine for every extra worker. He explained the ministry will deduct the amount directly from the bank accounts of the concerned companies. He said the ministry will soon form a committee to monitor implementation of the decision, while the activities of the committee will begin in earnest, especially since the execution of the automation project has started.

Meanwhile, Assistant Undersecretary for Planning and Administrative Development and Supervisor General for the Automation Project Awatif Al-Qattan affirmed the ministry has suspended files of companies that have not complied with the national manpower percentage.  She clarified the computer will automatically reject data related to these companies. She said the suspension is temporary until the companies comply with the directive and update their files.

Meanwhile, the new labor law in the private sector is a remarkable achievement for Kuwait, reports Al-Seyassah daily quoting International Labor Organization (ILO) representative in the country Thabet Al-Haroun. Stressing the need to translate the law into reality to improve the economic and social conditions in the country, Al-Haroun believes the new law will ease responsibilities of employers and give workers their full rights. He pointed out the current situation is better than the past, since the law is capable of transforming the country into a financial and economic hub in the region according to the desire of HH the Amir Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah.

Al-Haroun asserted the transformation requires issuance of some decisions, preparation and training of employees similar to other countries. He lamented the slow response with regards to the implementation of the law, since it is impossible to execute it without training the employees at the concerned ministry, including department managers and rank-and-file workers. “This is not a difficult task because the ministry can seek the assistance of other authorities and international organizations,” he added.