KUWAIT CITY, July 23: The Philippine Embassy in Kuwait, represented by the labor attaché, has begun accepting initial work contracts, known as job orders, from local recruitment companies and offices. This follows the recent approval of new regulations for recruiting Filipino workers, as confirmed by Bassam Al-Shammari, a specialist in domestic labor affairs. The new guidelines outline the steps, papers, and documents required for recruitment.

Al-Shammari explained to Al-Jarida that each company or office can conclude two job order contracts and request only experienced workers who have previously worked in Kuwait, the Gulf States, or other countries. New workers are not currently included in the recruitment process. He expects the first batches of workers to arrive from Manila within the next two months.

Local recruitment companies and offices are prepared to start bringing in domestic workers from Manila, addressing the urgent need in the market. The scarcity of countries exporting these workers to Kuwait and the significant void left by the ban on Filipino workers have highlighted their importance. Filipino domestic workers are highly valued by Kuwaiti and expatriate families for their ease of communication, quality care, educational level, and familiarity with local customs and traditions.

Al-Shammari also revealed a strong trend to amend the decision by the Minister of Commerce and Industry No. 2 of 2024, which set the recruitment price for domestic workers, including travel tickets, at 750 dinars from Asian countries, 575 from African countries, and 350 for special passports submitted by sponsors. The current pricing decision has negatively impacted the quality of workers arriving in Kuwait, as their ages have become higher than preferred. This has led to dissatisfaction among Kuwaiti and expatriate families who seek younger workers for better suitability and acceptance.

The move to introduce these amendments aims to improve the recruitment process and ensure a better quality of domestic workers arriving in Kuwait.