RIYADH: A rift is widening between the Ministry of Labor and the National Society for Human Rights (NSHR) over a proposal to abrogate the sponsorship system for foreign workers in the Kingdom, according to newspaper reports yesterday.
The NSHR said it has forwarded a comprehensive study it conducted on the issue to the ministry a week ago but the latter is denying any knowledge of such as study.
“We have not so far received the said study,” Deputy Labor Minister Abdul Wahid Al-Humaid said in a statement.
But NSHR President Bandar Al-Hajjar says he is sure that the study has reached the ministry. “The study has reached the ministry five days ago and we have proof of this,” Al-Hajjar said.
The rights watchdog called in the study for the abolition of the sponsorship (kafala) system in both the public and private sectors. The NSHR called for new regulations in which the work contract will be the base for the relationship between the foreign employee and the Saudi employer.
Al-Humaid said the NSHR did not coordinate with the ministry while conducting the study. He, however, affirmed that the ministry would seriously consider the recommendations when it receives the study and would discuss them with other concerned government bodies.
He said the ministry is currently working on improving the relationship between employers and workers through establishing shareholding companies for recruitment from outside.
Under the directives of the Council of Ministers and in collaboration with other concerned bodies, the ministry is working on the regulations governing the establishment of such companies.
Al-Hajjar called for a new formula away from the sponsorship system that would safeguard the rights of the foreign worker, the employer and the government.
