MoCI Slashes Domestic Labor Recruitment Costs, Leaves Union Stunned

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KUWAIT CITY, Jan 24: The Kuwait Union for Owners of Domestic Labor Recruitment Bureaus expressed surprise at the Ministry of Commerce and Industry’s decision to change the costs of recruiting domestic workers.

In a press statement, the union described the decision as shocking and ill-considered. It highlighted its concern for the interests of the owners of labor recruitment bureaus and for serving the Kuwaiti people and meeting their requirements for the provision of domestic workers. The union explained that such a decision must be taken by forming a committee whose members are representatives of all relevant ministries and the Public Authority for Manpower, in addition to representatives of the Kuwait Union of Owners of Domestic Workers Recruitment Bureaus. These procedures guarantee the issuance of a decision in line with the research of specialists in this field, and in line with the requirements of the local and global markets in the field of recruitment, so that the decision is fair and just for the Kuwaiti society and bureau owners.

The union stressed that the Board of Directors has sufficient experience to study such decisions and the mechanism for implementing them and determine how they suit the economic and social conditions for the Kuwaiti citizens and the recruitment bureaus in line with the similar social and economic conditions of the countries exporting that labor force. It stated that recruitment does not take place through the union, but rather through coordination and cooperation between the union and the labor-exporting countries, which are governed by binding laws and procedures that must be followed and not violated. The union revealed that the State of Kuwait is considered one of the cheapest in the region in terms of recruiting domestic workers, adding, “If it is compared with the Arabian Gulf countries, for example, there is a big difference between the prices. Their prices are very high compared to the prices in Kuwait.”

It said, “The prices set by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry are prices that have not been studied through a serious and realistic study. They are not economically feasible for those who engage in recruiting domestic workers and do not meet the requirements and specifications of the desired workers that Kuwaiti society requires. We cannot help but wonder who will bear the price difference.”

By Fares Al-Abdan
Al-Seyassah/Arab Times Staff

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