KUWAIT CITY, Sept 20: The local branch of International Labor Organization (ILO) has called on the ministries of Interior, Social Affairs and Labor and other authorities to initiate a legal process that will lead to the resolving of issues of domestic workers, reports Al-Seyassah daily.

ILO representative in the country Thabet Al-Haroun said many Kuwaiti and expatriate families are suffering because of the obvious abuses committed by domestic labor office owners who exploit workers and employers thinking they do not want solutions, which is not true at all.

He added that there is obvious keenness on the part of leadership in the Interior Ministry to resolve this issue that has been nagging the state and its administrative apparatus. He hoped that the ideas proposed by immigration directorate officials will be implemented especially since they have been approved and supported by local and international entities.

Al-Haroun said the branch is ready to offer all forms of support and expertise in order to resolve the issue.
Labor law

Meanwhile, the Cabinet, during its weekly meeting on Sunday, approved a proposal on amending Articles 9 and 10 of the new labor law, Al-Watan Arabic daily quoted Assistant Undersecretary for Labor Sector at the Ministry of Social Affairs and Labor Jamal Al-Dosri as saying.

Article 9, which is related to the budget of the Public Authority for Manpower, has been amended such that the authority’s budget will be included in the state budget instead of it having a separate budget.

In Article 10, which deals with the filing of absconding reports, the term ‘original sponsor’ has been replaced with ‘original employer.’

Al-Dosri added that the organizational structure of the Public Authority for Manpower, the draft law of which was approved by the Cabinet on Sunday, has been finalized.

Labor Law No. 6/2010 had mandated that a public authority for manpower be established within a year of the issuance of the law.