KUWAIT CITY, Jan 9: The Administration Affairs Department in the Ministry of Social Affairs and Labor has instructed all departments in the ministry to submit names of 30 percent of expatriate employees to end their services before the start of the new fiscal year – 2016/2017, reports Al-Rai daily quoting sources.

Sources explained the move aims to replace the expatriate employees with national manpower, adding that “delay in submitting the nominated names of expatriate employees whose line of work can be done by national manpower will prompt the department to end the services of those whom it sees suitable”.

Sources reiterated the objective behind this step is in line with the government’s decision to replace expatriate employees in the government sector with national manpower, in a bid to reduce the waiting list of citizens registered for employment through the Civil Service Commission (CSC). Sources added the ministry is one of the government establishments with about 80 percent citizens among employees in majority of its sectors, but some of the jobs heavily depend on expatriates.

Sources said these jobs are the ministry’s targets in order to reduce the number of expatriate workers. “The ministry is well aware of some of technical jobs that cannot be listed under the category of those whose expatriate workers must be reduced,” sources clarified.

Sources affirmed that as long as replacement from the national manpower is available, every job will be affected; asserting the decision will be implemented in a manner that the terminated expatriates will receive all their dues and they will be given the opportunity to transfer their residency to the private sector.