The Hindu : Kerala News : Avoiding labour disputes

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Monday, Oct 11, 2004

Kerala

Kerala

Avoiding labour disputes

By Vimala Vasan

ABU DHABI: Indians aspiring for jobs in the Gulf, particularly blue collar workers, are being urged by representatives of social organisations and Indian mission officials here to ensure that their job contracts are verified by missions in the Gulf. They should also seek jobs only through authorised recruiting agents in order to avoid getting into labour disputes involving non-payment of salaries and failure to fulfil contractual obligations by some companies.

Indian immigration authorities should also be more vigilant in clearing job and visit visa holders to the Gulf States, the officials said. A number of cases of labour disputes have been highlighted by the local media this year. In majority of the cases, the expatriate employer has either announced a closure of the company due to monetary problems or has absconded, leaving workers behind with several months of unpaid wages.

Causes of disputes

K. Kumar, president of the Dubai based Indian Association and convener of the Indian Community Welfare Committee, told The Hindu that the main reason for many labour disputes was the mushrooming of small contracting firms which take on sub-contracting jobs. "When payment problems arise, these firms find it difficult to survive and as a domino effect, the workers become the most affected," he pointed out. Mr. Kumar said that the committee had been involved in various ways over the past few years in assisting workers stranded without pay, accommodation and food.

"A few important aspects that have to be highlighted to job aspirants in India is that jobs are not there for the asking in the Gulf States as is presumed back home. The competition is stiff - there are a number of nationalities now vying for jobs and properly attested certificates are required for some categories of employment. The Gulf States are also understandably keen on maintaining a demographic balance. Unfortunately, Indian workers who desperately seek employment here become prey to touts back home who promise them jobs in companies which do not have a good performance record. When a problems arises, they are left high and dry by the employers," he said.

Mr. Kumar also pointed out that unless a salary of Dh 800 per month is offered, it is not worthwhile for workers to pay huge sums as commission to Indian agents and come here for jobs.

He also stressed that as part of a long-term solution, Indian immigration authorities should not permit Indian workers to leave the country unless they have valid work documents issued through authorised agents. Visit visa holders should also be queried regarding the purpose of their visit to the Gulf, he added.

Need for patience

Indian mission officials here also emphasised the need for workers to be patient and get their work contracts verified by the missions in order to ensure that they are being employed by reliable firms. The missions render assistance to workers with unpaid wages by co-ordinating with the errant firms and the courts to seek redressal of workers' grievances. Clearances for the workers are also sought, so that they can look for jobs in other suitable companies, an embassy official said.

The UAE authorities have also been announcing a series of stringent measures to bring to book erring expat employers who default on payment of wages. Illegal expatriate workers with no proper documents who are taking up jobs that they were not originally recruited for, are also being regularly rounded up by the authorities.

The UAE Labour and Social Affairs Ministry here has been resolving many disputes and has also issued regulations insisting that all future employment contracts should include details of salary and the job description in order to safeguard the rights of the expat workforce and prevent employers from manipulating the initial contracts offered to new workers.

Open house sessions

Meanwhile, the Indian missions here have launched monthly open house sessions, where any member of the expatriate community can meet senior mission officials without appointment and raise issues or seek a solution for their problems. An Embassy official said that the first two sessions had been very useful to obtain feedback and suggestions from community members. Plans are on to hold subsequent sessions in a downtown location in Abu Dhabi, as well as in Al Ain. A labour official at the Indian Consulate in Dubai said that complicated labour problems, passport issues etc., were raised at the meetings. He was confident that the Open House concept would bring about a closer interaction with the large Indian expat community in the UAE.

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