Qatar Labour Law Reform: 4 lakh Bangladeshis to reap benefit
The situations of about four lakh Bangladeshi expatriates, mainly migrant workers, in Qatar are set to improve as the Gulf country recently made some major changes to its labour laws for workers' protection.
As per the changes, there will be a rise in the minimum wage by 25 percent to 1,000 riyals ($275) a month and workers would not be required to have the employer's permission to change jobs, according to media reports.
They are the latest in a series of labour reforms by the 2022 FIFA World Cup host, which in the lead up to the tournament has faced accusations that migrant workers are exploited, reports Reuters.
The new minimum wage, which comes into effect in six months and is 250 riyals more a month than the old one, is non-discriminatory and applies to all workers, the report added.
Amnesty International has lauded the changes and said those are "a significant step towards protecting migrant workers" and that the amendments could strike at the heart of the abusive kafala (sponsorship) system.
The global rights group, however, said full implementation of the laws remains key if the country aims to truly end labour exploitation.
"For too long, laws that ban workers from changing jobs without their employer's permission, along with widespread low pay, have left migrant workers in Qatar at the mercy of abusive employers," Steve Cockburn, Amnesty International's head of economic and social justice, said in a statement on Sunday.
The two reforms were first announced by the Emir of Qatar in October, 2019, and were signed into law on Sunday, Amnesty said.
The Qatar Ministry of Administrative Development, Labour and Social Affairs has introduced the laws to "protect the interests of employers and employees", reports The Peninsula, an English daily published from Doha.
According to the Bangladesh Embassy in Doha, more than 80 percent of Bangladeshi male workers in Qatar are involved in the construction sector.
In recent years, Qatar has hired about 2.8 lakh semi-skilled and less skilled workers from Bangladesh mainly for its construction projects aimed to develop infrastructures for the World Cup and to implement their "National Vision-2030", according to the mission.
In 2018, Bangladeshis remitted about $983.91 million from Qatar, whereas last year the amount of remittance sent from the Gulf country was $1.1 billion, shows the government data.
On March 26 this year, Bangladesh Ambassador to Qatar Ashud Ahmed said the Qatar government in the last few years has undertaken several "modern and bold" initiatives to protect rights of migrant workers.
The Qatar government also helped the Bangladesh community fight the coronavirus pandemic, he said in a video message, on the occasion of Bangladesh's 49th anniversary of independence.
"About 4.16 lakh Bangladeshis live in Qatar and a large part of them are migrant workers. Bangladeshis constitute the second-largest expatriate community in the Gulf country," he had said.
The expatriates' welfare ministry data shows 7,129 migrant workers returned from Qatar amid the pandemic from April 1 till August 26 because they had no jobs.
Following Qatar's enactment of the new laws, International Labour Organisation in a statement on Sunday said migrant workers can now change jobs before the end of their contract without first having to obtain a No Objection Certificate from their employer.
To terminate an employment contract and change jobs, workers must provide at least one month's written notice if they have worked with the employer for two years or less, or two months' notice if they have worked with the employer for over two years.
Besides, the new minimum wage will apply to workers of all nationalities and in all sectors, including domestic workers, the ILO said.
In addition to the basic minimum wage, employers must ensure that workers have decent accommodation and food, it added.
Amnesty International said the minimum wage replaces a temporary minimum wage of 750 Qatari riyals set in 2017. However, some nationalities like Nepali and Filipino workers already had higher minimum wages negotiated via bilateral agreements.
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