14,000 Kuwaitis without salaries; affected by govt disruption

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KUWAIT CITY, April 29: The interruption of work in government departments due to the “corona pandemic” has affected about 14,000 male and female citizens after the state stopped the salaries and aid they were receiving for various reasons.

In the face of this, a number of affected citizens have launched a media campaign under the slogan “Kuwaiti without salaries” to demand the end of their suffering and payment of their salaries. They are working to end procedures for appointment.

The campaign is also for those whose appointments were suspended due to the disruption of work in the ministries or disbursement of salaries and aid suspended through lack of data update.

The distress call launched by 14,000 citizens, which was heard in Ramadan, coincided with the increase in expenses during the holy month amid the interruption of salaries for the duration of the delay.

They were initially hopeful that work disruption would not be long and life would return to normal with work flow in the ministries, but the protracted crisis has added to their economic troubles and drained their pockets. Leader of “Kuwaitis without salaries” campaign, Ali Al-Otaibi, said “the sudden suspension of ministries and government agencies without notice, as a result of the coronavirus crisis, is making us live without salaries, due to the disruption of work in the ministries”.

The number of citizens under the campaign reaches 2,000 besides citizens who are affected in other groups, in light of the crisis that is ravaging the world amid lack of food and drink supplies.

Al-Otaibi added the solution for those affected by the suspension of work in the ministries and institutions is to return “partial operation” in two departments; namely the administrative and financial affairs, to solve the problem bye completing procedures for appointment requests.

For example, roughly 22,000 expatriate teachers received six months salaries in advance, so within three days, they can count the numbers and finish the procedures of 2,000 citizens”.

The 11 affected categories:

1. A citizen who did not complete procedures for appointment, and thus received no salary and unable to apply for help in the Ministry of Social Affairs

2. An employee who resigned from a government job and was unable to provide family support.

3. A citizen who resigned from private sector and was unable to complete the procedures for cashing out unemployment insurance.

4. A citizen employed in private sector whose employer was unable to send the required documents to the Social Security Authority to complete the employment support procedures.

5. A citizen who initiated the retirement procedures and his salary was suspended by the employer before his insurance papers were sent, and accordingly, leading to the suspension of documents.

6. A citizen whose salary was suspended by his employer for an administrative reason and was unable to provide documents for payment.

7. A citizen who graduated from the university and was unable to complete the procedures for receiving graduates’ reward.

8. A citizen whose unemployment insurance period expired during the crisis in March and was unable to secure employment or apply for assistance from the Ministry of Social Affairs.

9. Divorcees and widows whose aid was suspended because the data was not updated.

10. A citizen who worked abroad in a foreign company and has returned to the country without salary or breadwinner.

11. Salaries of private sector employees stopped as a result of the disruption of their work.

This news has been read 17166 times!