Manama: Qatar is considering the introduction of minimum wages as part of efforts to boost the productivity of the labour force, an official has said.
"We are thinking about it," Ebrahim Al Ebrahim, economic adviser to the Emir Shaikh Hamad Bin Khalifa Al Thani, said. "The minimum wage is still in the conceptual stage," he told the media on the sidelines of the launch of Qatar Economic Outlook 2011-2012.
Qatar has no mandatory minimum rate of pay for workers.
Asked whether he expected any hurdles in implementing minimum wages, Al Ebrahim said that there could be "resistance", but stressed that it would be done only after taking various stakeholders into confidence, Qatari daily Gulf Times reported on Wednesday.
Al Ebrahim said that discussions on the issue with trade bodies, such as the Qatar Chamber of Commerce and Industry would take place at a later stage.
"We will discuss with them later because at present, the government's priority is health insurance for employees, which is expected to be in place in a year."
