New amendments to DWL

On May 15th 2022, new amendments were put into force regarding the Domestic Workers Law issued in 2015. These amendments were issued by Jamal Al-Jalawi, the Minister of Justice. The amendments of articles and addition of new ones, impact domestic workers’ livelihood and employment conditions. The changes affect 3 parties: the domestic worker, the employer, and recruitment agencies. Here is an overview of the changes made, as summarized by this article in the Arab Times:

• On the transfer of contract from one employer to another: these reasons include: death of the employer, divorced employers, losing eligibility conditions for the employer, act/statement/or gesture of sexual connotation by the employer or people in the household. 

• On issuing licenses for recruitment agencies: in order to obtain a license, there are further steps needed to prove financial guarantee and valid payment, from 40,000 KWD for offices and institutions, and 100,000 KWD for companies.  

• On requirements by the employer: to fulfill the needs of the employee, such as food, clothing, and medical treatment. As well as preventing the domestic worker from paying any financial fees. 

• On the minimum wage: there is now an increase of the minimum wage to 75 KWD per month. 

• On delayed salary: the employer will pay a fine of 10 KWD for each month that the salary is 7 days late, in addition to the monthly salary. 

• On filing absconding cases: it is now prohibited to file an absconding report “after submitting a complaint to the competent department, provided that he/she is registered with the migrant worker shelter center, and the ban is considered to be lifted after the complaint is settled or referred to the competent judiciary.’’

• On annual leave, overtime, and work hours: annual leave not less than 30 days with pay after spending 11 months at work, paid weekly day off (24 hours), and overtime hours to not exceed 2 hours per day, alongside overtime wage. 

It is important that both domestic workers and employers are aware of the current legal changes, to ensure healthy workplace conditions. These articles are now in force, since May 15th 2022.

For more information on these changes, please visit the original article via the source below. 

Sources:

Arab Times, May 16 2022. ‘Sponsor’s duty to provide food, clothing for worker’; PAM nods new rules.