Unions have no role in domestic helpers’ cases
The General Federation of Bahrain Trade Unions (GFBTU) is prepared to take up the cudgels for thousands of expatriate workers but not household workers.
GFBTU chairman Abdulghaffar Abdulhussein admitted that issues affecting an estimated 40,000 foreign domestic workers are “simply beyond” them.
“They are workers but the laws applying to them are very different. They are also not included in the labour law, it’s beyond us,” Abdulhussein said.
“We are ready to help because we understand many of them are exploited and we are also waiting for the law which will specifically look into their state,” he said.
Unions have no role in domestic helpers’ cases
The General Federation of Bahrain Trade Unions (GFBTU) is prepared to take up the cudgels for thousands of expatriate workers but not household workers.
GFBTU chairman Abdulghaffar Abdulhussein admitted that issues affecting an estimated 40,000 foreign domestic workers are “simply beyond” them.
“They are workers but the laws applying to them are very different. They are also not included in the labour law, it’s beyond us,” Abdulhussein said.
“We are ready to help because we understand many of them are exploited and we are also waiting for the law which will specifically look into their state,” he said.
Abdulhussein spoke to the Press this weekend where he spelled out the union’s commitment to help foreign workers vulnerable to exploitation. He particularly zeroed in on labourers in the construction sector.
It is very rare that the GFBTU would comment on issues related to housemaids but Abdulhussein said that they are also monitoring developments affecting them.
The fate of foreign domestic workers and efforts on how to protect them still hang in the balance.
The Government had earlier promised to finalise a separate legislation guiding the welfare of the domestic workers. But the law has not come as yet.
Non-governmental organisations like the Bahrain Human Rights Society had asked the Government to approach the issue of domestic workers very soon because it remained a persistent problem that affects the country’s human rights record.
Titus Filio