JEDDAH/RIYADH, 27 March 2003 — Filipino drivers at Al-Bassami Transport Company will have to wait even longer for justice as their complaint against their employer has been referred to the Labor Court.

More than 250 trailer drivers stopped work some days ago to protest against alleged unfair labor practices by their employer. They told Arab News the company forced them to pay for any damage to trailers including broken windshields, busted tires and damage to cars while being hauled by the trailer trucks — even if that damage was a result of accidents. Moreover, they added, the employees had to pay their own medical expenses.

In Riyadh, Mariano A. Dumia, minister at the Philippine Embassy, told Arab News that the trailer drivers had filed a case against the company in the Labor Court for non-compliance with the terms and conditions of the original contract, and for compelling the overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) to sign a new contract, which they refused.

He said a delegation of some 100 OFWs had visited the embassy and submitted a representation on the working conditions at Al-Bassami.

Dumia expressed surprise over Al-Bassami’s insistence that the drivers should be responsible for the maintenance and repair of trailers. “Normally, a company owes dues to its employees. Here it is the other way round,” he said.

Al-Bassami refused to comment.

“For days we have stopped working to protest the inhuman treatment we are getting from the company,” said Max Cabual, one of the protest leaders.

According to Cabual, who is based in Riyadh, the company’s drivers from other countries have also decided to stop work.

Cabual said that because of the new ruling, a copy of which was obtained by Arab News, some of the drivers could not even go on vacation. They were stuck here until they paid off all charges levied on them by the company.

Cabual added that when a driver meets with an accident and any of the cars in the trailer is damaged, he must pay for it from his salary. One Filipino driver was being made to pay SR75,000 for cars damaged in an accident, he said.

When reminded of the new regulation requiring drivers to insure their licenses to cover damages and loss of life, Cabual said drivers had done this on their own. However, in case of accidents, the cost of damage to their trailer or the cars they are transporting was still deducted from their salaries.

Al-Bassami Transport Company is one of the biggest transport companies in the Kingdom and has 36 branches. The majority of its drivers are Filipinos.

Until the latest decree — issued on Sept. 9, 1997 by the Council of Ministers Decision No. 90 — the company had allegedly been charging their employees the cost of Iqamas and their renewal.

The drivers also said the company was not paying their salaries on time, and not providing them “suitable and comfortable housing facilities” as provided for in their standard contract issued by the Philippine Embassy or the consulate.

Employers are required to sign this contract before they can hire skilled workers. They are also bound by law to honor the provisions of the contract.

Arab News observed that some drivers were forced to sleep outside their accommodation because it was too crowded. According to some drivers, at least 20 people share a room of less than three square meters.

As a result of the overcrowding, some of the drivers have to cook their food outside where the trailers are parked.

When the drivers asked for advice from the Philippine Consulate in Jeddah, they were referred to the labor conciliator, who in turn told them to go to the Philippine Embassy in Riyadh, where the company is based.

Disappointed, the drivers sought help from Filipino community leaders in Riyadh, who referred the case to the office of Riyadh Governor Prince Salman.

A hearing for the drivers and the company is scheduled for today.

Al-Bassami Transport Company was barred by the Philippine Overseas and Employment Agency from recruiting, but new drivers had arrived from the Philippines regardless, the protesters said.

Cabual said the new recruits had signed three-year contracts, in violation of the standard contract supposedly entered into by the company and the employees, which provides for two-year contracts only.

“The company has pending cases in the Philippines because of its bad record. As far as we know, it has been banned from recruiting new drivers. We are shocked to find that it is still able to recruit new drivers,” commented Danny Abaygar, 60, the most senior among the drivers.

— Additional input by Javid Hassan in Riyadh and K.S. Ramkumar in Jeddah