KUWAIT'S DOMESTIC LABOR ADMINISTRATION TAKES

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 KUWAIT 001041 SIPDIS SENSITIVE SIPDIS FOR NEA/ARP, INL/HSTC, AND G/TIP E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PHUM ELAB RP KU TIP SUBJECT: KUWAIT'S DOMESTIC LABOR ADMINISTRATION TAKES PRACTICAL APPROACH TO RESOLVING DOMESTIC WORKERS' COMPLAINTS REF: A. KUWAIT 921 ¶B. KUWAIT 436 ¶C. 05 KUWAIT 263 ¶D. 04 KUWAIT 350 ¶E. 03 KUWAIT 5561 ¶1. (U) Summary and Comment. PolOff and PolAssistant visited the Domestic Worker Administration (DWA) on March 18, and PolOff followed up with an unannounced visit to the DWA on March 22 to see how the GOK deals with domestic workers who have complaints. The DWA's role, as reported to Emboffs by General Manager Colonel Esam No'mani, is to find, through consultation and negotiation, fast, practical solutions to problems brought by domestic workers. While the DWA needs more authority and resources, the DWA represents a way for workers to obtain most or all of their missed wages and quickly exit work situations they find unacceptable. It appears to be most effective at resolving disputes over salaries and benefits; cases involving allegations of physical or sexual abuse are referred to the Office of the Public Prosecutor. Encouraging the GOK to build on native institutions such as the DWA, in addition to continued ESF funding for projects like FALCon (ref C) and RESPECT (ref A), will provide positive tools to help combat TIP and promote respect for human rights. End Summary and Comment. The Domestic Worker Administration (DWA) -------------- ¶2. (SBU) The DWA is a division of the Ministry of Interior (MOI),which is responsible for the administrative and legal status of domestic workers in Kuwait. It is housed on the upper floor of the Adiliya police station and administered by uniformed MOI officers as well as civilian lawyers. ¶3. (SBU) Domestic workers may not go directly to the DWA. They must report to their embassy or their local police station if they have a complaint, and from there they are referred to the DWA. If they report to a police station, they have the option of filing a case against an employer, but many employees justifiably fear that the employer will immediately retaliate by filing an "absconding" case. This results in the domestic worker being kept in jail until the case can be passed to the investigator and eventually be resolved, often by deportation. If the worker reports to an embassy and is referred to the DWA, however, the worker will not end up in jail and the DWA, together with the embassy, will strive to negotiate a solution without resorting to formal legal action. Three Days per Week for Filipina Domestic Worker Cases -------------- -------------- ¶4. (SBU) On Saturdays, Mondays, and Wednesdays, the Philippines Embassy is allowed to bring in domestic workers to have their cases mediated. All other countries bring their workers on Sundays and Tuesdays. Comment: Filipinas get more days than other nationalities because, although they make up only about 10 percent of domestic workers in Kuwait, they are much more assertive in demanding their rights and make up a disproportionate percentage of workers seeking redress. Filipinas' greater assertiveness is likely due to two factors: (a) they have relatively higher levels of education, with high school or even university degrees not uncommon and (b) the well-regulated domestic labor office industry in the Philippines appears to do a better job of preparing them for overseas employment. Also, workers from other countries often have to borrow heavily to pay exorbitant fees to come to Kuwait. Therefore they are more vulnerable to manipulative employers since they cannot return home empty-handed. Filipinas, at least in part because of the effective oversight of domestic labor offices, pay little or nothing to obtain work contracts to come to Kuwait, and therefore have less to lose by leaving a bad employer and perhaps being sent home. This emphasizes the importance of source country prevention efforts. End Comment. ¶5. (SBU) On Wednesday, March 22, PolOff observed James Mendiola, from the Philippines Embassy, working to resolve domestic workers' cases one at a time as approximately 30 Filipinas waited in the hallway that serves as a lobby. Each worker entered the office where Mendiola and Salim, the Kuwaiti negotiator, had respectively the English and Arabic copy of the worker's file. After reviewing the case, Salim called the sponsor to come to the office to resolve the case, consulting the entire time with Mendiola about acceptable terms. KUWAIT 00001041 002 OF 003 Employer Claimed Maid Practiced Magic -------------- ¶6. (SBU) One maid seeking assistance had not been paid in 8 months. Her Kuwaiti employer, a Kuwait National Guard employee, arrived at the station and told PolOff that he agreed to pay the 8 months of salary, claiming that he had been holding the salary as insurance that she did not run away. He had told her he did not want her to work for him anymore because she had been practicing black magic. He had then put her to work for a relative, who also did not like her. The employer agreed to pay fines of 50 Dinars (171 USD) the maid had incurred for being out of status, but not to pay for her airline ticket home, which is normally the sponsor's responsibility. In response to PolOff's question of why she accepted not getting the plane ticket, Mendiola stated that domestic workers would try to get what they could rather than attempting to get absolutely everything and facing a drawn-out court battle. The Embassy, the DWA, the employer, and the worker all signed that they agreed on the settlement terms and money was exchanged. Employer Was Holding Worker's Salary for "Safekeeping" -------------- -------------- ¶7. (SBU) Another maid claimed her sponsor owed her 16 months of salary. The sponsor produced a signed salary book (a requirement of all domestic labor employers in Kuwait) as proof that he had paid the first nine months. The maid said that her employer had been keeping the salary so it would not be lost, but that she was not given the money when she asked for it. This was the second time the sponsor had been called by the DWA. The sponsor had agreed to pay 4 months salary the first time. This time, however, Salim was able to convince the sponsor to pay the seven months for which there was no proof of payment. Case Unresolved -------------- ¶8. (SBU) In the third case observed by PolOff, the maid had not been paid for three months. According to Mr. Mendiola, she was dissatisfied with her Kuwait experience and wanted to go home rather than try another employer. Her case was not resolved. She will stay at the Philippines Embassy shelter, a large room that was occupied by approximately 250 workers on a March 19 visit by PolOff. Her case is not atypical, as most workers need to come to the DWA several times before their sponsor can be brought in. DWA's Approach: Practical Solutions -------------- ¶9. (SBU) General Manager No'mani admitted that the DWA has no power to impose any punishments on sponsors who violate their contracts, such as fines or restrictions on sponsoring domestic workers in the future. He told PolOff "I'm not a judge." He agreed that some sort of penalty would be a good idea, but in the meantime his role was to broker an acceptable solution for both parties. When PolOff asked if it were not possible to hire a few more negotiators, he said that they were hoping for a new, larger facility where that would be possible. He also told PolOff they would get a computerized system to track cases when they moved to a new building. He did not have an idea when that might be. In cases where an agreement cannot be reached, the domestic worker can file a case. Mendiola asserted that this can take up to two years, so most workers prefer to reach a settlement. Mendiola feels that the DWA needs stronger powers to convince employers to cooperate, but that its activities over the past year represent a tangible improvement in the situation. He agreed with No'mani's assessment that most workers are able to recover most or all of the wages due to them. In non-salary cases, such as beatings and sexual harassment, the DWA transfers the case to the Public Prosecutor's Office. Shelter: a Welcome Idea -------------- ¶10. (SBU) In response to a question about a shelter, No'mani responded enthusiastically that this would be a great idea. He reiterated what his superior, General Abdullah Al-Ruweih, told PolOff at a previous meeting (ref C),i.e. that this shelter is under study. In a March 19 meeting with officials from the Ministry of Social Affairs and Labor (MOSAL),PolOff was told that the shelter is currently under study by the Kuwait Municipality, which is responsible for KUWAIT 00001041 003 OF 003 allocating land in Kuwait. PolOff contacted Municipality officials and is waiting for confirmation of an appointment. ********************************************* * For more reporting from Embassy Kuwait, visit: http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/nea/kuwait/?cable s Visit Kuwait's Classified Website: http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/nea/kuwait/ ********************************************* * LEBARON