By SOMAN BABY
TENS of thousands of ‘free visa’ workers still at large in Bahrain, a leading contractor claimed yesterday.
These men work mainly in the construction sector, switching from one employer to another, said the Bahrain Contractors Society.
Tag Archives: Workers
LMRA offers last chance to illegals
By soman baby
EXPATRIATES whose residence permit (RP) expired this month still have a chance to stay in Bahrain, provided they have found a new employer, a top official has revealed.
The new employer should apply for the work visa at the Labour Market Regulatory Authority during the one-month grace period, said LMRA chief executive Ali Radhi.
Indians in Bahrain 290,000
By GEOFFREY BEW
MANAMA: Record number of Indians are living and working in Bahrain, it has emerged.
Indian Ambassador Balkrishna Shetty yesterday confirmed the population had now reached 290,000, with around 5,000 people arriving every month.
Helpless and confused
WHY is it that my company, a private hospital, is still holding on to our passports despite repeated calls and warnings from the Labour Ministry and the Labour Market Regulatory Authority (LMRA) that it is illegal and against international law?
Workers win pay promise
MANAMA
WORKERS who claim they missed out on pay rises under a government shake-up won a minister’s backing yesterday. The promise came as scores of low-ranking Municipalities and Agriculture Affairs Ministry workers demonstrated outside the ministry complex in Manama.
The minister, Mansoor bin Rajab, went out into the heat to meet them, then invited them into the cool for talks.
High Gulf inflation pushing foreign workers home
DUBAI: Lured by tax-free jobs and cheap living, foreign workers have long gravitated to wealthy Gulf states to earn a better living, but rising costs are now forcing many to go home. Inflation has soared to record or near-record levels across the Gulf region, where migrants ranging from high-paid Western executives to low-wage Asian labourers have formed the backbone of oil-fuelled development since the 1970s.
Already pinched by rising rents and salaries, firms are finding it increasingly hard to recruit staff to countries like the UAE, where wages paid in the dollar-pegged dirham have eroded the value of remittances.
Embassy plea over passports
By SOMAN BABY
A TOTAL of 878 passports of Indian nationals are lying unclaimed at the Indian Embassy, it was revealed yesterday. The passports were handed over to the embassy by sponsors after the general amnesty was launched in August last year.
LMRA chaos
THE LMRA should be commended for its work and its mission, which we expect should improve the lot of both expatriates and Bahrainis alike as it relates to workers’ rights and improving employment opportunities for nationals.
However, in the past two weeks, we have been deeply shocked by the manner in which the LMRA has conducted its registration process at Bahrain International Investment Park, Hidd.
Skilled workers ‘are expensive to hire’
By SOMAN BABY
HIRING professionals from India in Bahrain is becoming extremely difficult due to improved salaries and incentives there, according to a visiting recruiting agency chief.
This is coupled with an unprecedented demand for skilled workers and professionals in India, said Andhra Pradesh Recruiting Agents Association president Mohammed Abdul Razzak.
Small firms ‘will be hit hardest’
By MANDEEP SINGH
MANAMA
SMALL contracting companies who depend on cheap labour will be hit the hardest following a government decision to ban Bangladeshis from working in Bahrain, industry officials said yesterday.