Geneva (Parliament Politics Magazine) – The Qatar Ministry of Labour organized the International Labor Conference in Geneva to present the new labour reforms. International Labor Organization (ILO), International Trade Union Confederation ( ITUC), and International Organization for Employers (IOE) Participated in the conference.
All the organizations highly praised the efforts of the Qatari Government for making great progress for workers’ welfare and labour rights. It is the key step they have taken in the run-up to hosting the FIFA World Cup 2022.
Ahead of the FIFA World Cup, a new minimum wage law has increased wages for 280,000 workers, and legislation has been introduced on working during high temperatures.
The labour reforms also include new regulations on overtime pay, termination, and condition of employment for domestic workers.
International plaudits for Qatar’s labour reforms during a seminar organized by MoL, under the auspices of H.E Dr. Ali bin Samikh Al-Marri, Minister of Labour, on the sidelines of the 110th session of ILC-Geneva 2022.#molqtr
@ilo @ioevoice @ituc pic.twitter.com/9S4cL0dJ0v— وزارة العمل (@MOLQTR) June 9, 2022
Sharan Burrow, ITUC General Secretary, was initially very critical of the labour system in Qatar, but after understanding the reforms, he believed that workers can now have justice in Qatar.
He said, “The Qatari Reform of the labour laws are not just an agreement, they are in legislation, and there is a system of compliance, the labour courts.”
Reforms
1- Labour Mobility
On 8 September 2020, legislation that reformed a central element of the kafala or sponsorship system – the right of workers to change jobs without their employer’s permission – entered into force.
Law no 19 of 2020, complemented by Ministerial decision No.51 of 2020, removed the legal requirement for migrant workers to obtain no obligation certificates from employers to change jobs.
In addition, law no 18 of 2020 was adopted, introducing legal provisions governing termination of employment.
It is crucial to understand that greater mobility is beneficial to both workers and employers. From October 2020 and October 2021, over 242,870 workers changed jobs.
2- Social Protection
Social Protection is a new element of the MADLSA-ILO technical cooperation program. A scoping mission was undertaken in October 2021 by ILO social protection specialists to better understand the priorities of the Government, employers and workers.
3- Career Development Services
The ILO and MADLSA are participating in the Career Guidance stakeholders platform organized by the Qatar development Centre. The ILO has participated in preparatory meetings and will participate as discussants in the technical session.
4- Non-discrimination and Combating Violence and Harassment at Work
The ILO and MADLSA have collaborated with the International training center of the ILO in Turin to develop two self–paced online courses on the ILO’s discrimination ( employment and occupation) convention.