Kuwait's Minister of Social Development Reveals Domestic Worker Law Will be Issued in May 2010

It appears that new legislation to protect Kuwait's 600,000 domestic workers is now in the works following last month's official publication of an updated labor law for expatriate workers in the private sector, following months of parliamentary discussions and deliberations. Kuwait's Minister of Social Development, Mohammad al-Afassi revealed that his ministry (officially responsible for the legal rights of domestic workers) would be issuing a new law as early as this coming May. A new interest in passing legislation that addresses Kuwait's domestic labor force, affecting housemaids, drivers and landscapers follows international pressures, NGO lobbying, and heightened criticism over grievances that were not addressed in the new private sector labor law. Up until February of 2010, Kuwait's labor law had not been updated in over 45 years.

The Kuwait Times profiled several interviews with domestic housemaids, asking them what they believed would be the most important clauses the new labor law should include. One worker insisted that matters dealing with domestic workers should be addressed by civilian authorities, and not the "scary and unfriendly" uniformed representatives of the Ministry of Interior. Two other housemaids highlighted the need for one day off during the workweek. They stated that they had been working for their current employers for 5 years and were only allowed one day off a year under their current arrangement! An extension of this request is the establishment of a work-day and legal working hours.

The vulnerability of domestic workers and the lack of freedom they awarded under the current laws has been exposed recently with heightened statistics on suicide rates in the country. There is currently no option for employees to switch employers without consent and low or even non-existent wages in exchange for their work make it impossible for most to repay the debts they owe for their work visas.

Meanwhile, one Kuwaiti official has suggested reducing the number of domestic workers who are allowed to enter Kuwait and shortening the current validity periods of worker visas to shift current demographic ratios and potentially prevent human trafficking.