The Cabinet has issued decisions which say the ‘Kuwait Musafir’ and “Bal Salama” platforms for domestic workers, in addition to the “Mina” system for accrediting foreign laboratories for the issuance of PCR certificates, are no more required which will greatly meet the demands of the domestic labor recruitment offices.

Al-Jarida daily quoting the Cabinet move is satisfactory since the country is inching towards normalcy and will reflect positively on the labor market and the newly recruited workers, particularly the domestics.

Bassam Al-Shammari, who is a specialist in domestic labor affairs, thanked the Cabinet and the government agencies for responding to the demands of office owners to stop the ‘Bal Salama’ platform, stressing that the decision will have a huge effect on the domestic labor market, especially amid the severe shortage that it is currently experiencing, and will accelerate the pace of recruitment from abroad, and will increase the appetite of workers to come to Kuwait.

He explained to “Al-Jarida” that the most prominent positives of the decision were the reduction in recruitment costs, after deducting the institutional quarantine expenses, which was 240 dinars, in a way that eases the financial burdens on those who wish to use the services of this labor, indicating that after the cancellation of the quarantine, there will be no additional recruitment costs other than airline tickets, and conducting a PCR examination for those who are not vaccinated.

Regarding lifting the quarantine imposed on workers who entered Kuwait last week, that is, before the decision to stop work on the platform took effect, Al-Shammari said that some office owners demanded those in charge of “safety” to cancel the quarantine imposed on these workers who entered the country before the decision was implemented, but the authorities refused and said they must adhere to completing the 14-day quarantine period,” noting that there was a case whose sponsor threatened to file a complaint with the Ministry of Interior about the disappearance of the worker brought on his sponsorship, the quarantine was canceled and she was handed over to the sponsor.

He renewed his call for the necessity of activating the cabinet decision and canceling the quarantine imposed on newly recruited domestic workers, and handing them over to their employers upon their arrival in the country, as well as canceling all restrictions imposed on new workers.

For his part, the owner of one of the recruitment offices, Nayef Al-Mazal, expressed his satisfaction with the decision to stop working on the “Safety” platform, stressing that it is a true translation of the stability of the health situation in the country, and the beginning of the decline of the fourth wave of the epidemic, amid the successive decisions recently taken by the Council of Ministers in order to return to normal life and easing restrictions on travel, recruitment of workers and allowing gatherings.

Al-Mazal told Al-Jarida, “Local offices have suffered greatly during the past period from the scarcity of foreign recruitment requests, and the reluctance of workers to come to Kuwait, preferring other neighboring countries, due to the difficulty of recruitment procedures imposed by the concerned authorities, in addition to the many obstacles placed by countries exporting or receiving labor in the wake of the outbreak of the pandemic,” stressing that the decision to stop work on the platform doubles recruitment requests, which will reflect on the numbers of workers that will enter the country during the coming period, especially as we are approaching the blessed month of Ramadan, during which the demand for these workers increases.

He pointed out that all indicators pave the way for the return to normal life with procedures for the recruitment and use of civil and domestic workers that were in place before the emergence of the pandemic, especially that there is a noticeable decline in the number of infections among domestic workers who arrive in the country.


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