Kuwait, Bahrain agree deal to protect Nepal workers

Agreements have been signed between Nepal's trade union and its equivalent in Kuwait and Bahrain in a bid to give overseas workers better protection.

Kuwait has 40,000 Nepalese workers, with more than half of them female domestic workers, while the majority of men work in the construction industry.

Nepal's largest employer is the Gulf states, where families depend on making money overseas, but the rapid expansion of migrant labour has taken place without formal protection of workers' rights.

In a move encouraged by the international trade union movement, two memorandum of understandings (MOU) have been agreed between the Nepalese trade union GEFONT and those in Kuwait (KTUF) and Bahrain (GFBTU).

Sharan Burrow, general secretary of the International Trade Union Confederation, said many workers arrive with little more than a contract, leaving behind their family and too often their basic human rights.

"The MOU seals the solidarity between workers in both countries. Working together the unions will create better conditions for migrant workers," said Sharan Burrow.

In Kuwait, the MOU will tackle issues of worker intimidation and trade union rights among Nepali workers.

The KTUF has committed to working with GEFONT to address issues and set up a system to protect and improve workers' needs.

"We will respect the laws of Kuwait, but we need to better protect our workers abroad," said Ramesh Badal, secretary of the Department of Foreign Affairs of GEFONT.

He said campaigns for legislative reform will also be pursued in both countries to abolish the restrictive sponsorship system for workers and to improve recruitment agencies in Nepal through increased monitoring.

Abdulrahman Alghanim, general secretary of the KTUF, added: "Migrant workers pay huge sums to unscrupulous recruiters, sometimes leading to situations of debt bondage, whereas often fees have already been paid by Kuwaiti employers.

"In the absence of a solid legal framework and rigid monitoring, recruitment agencies and all sorts of middlemen get away with organised slave trading."

In October, it was reported that Nepal had lifted its ban on exporting housemaids to Gulf states and was planning to deploy about 150,000 female workers to the region.

The plan was part of the framework of an agreement with Gulf countries that will guarantee protection to the maids, according to new Nepalese ambassador Udaya Raj Pandey, who is based in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.