Labour cap will be applied separately to each country

Abu Dhabi: A senior labour ministry official said most GCC nations are in favour of the proposed 3+3 law to limit the stay of unskilled workers in the region.

"The 3+3 law was discussed at the ministerial meeting in Riyadh and most countries were in favour of the law," said Yousuf Jaffar, Legal Adviser in the Ministry of Labour (MoL), following the GCC labour ministers meeting in Saudi Arabia last week.

Hinting that the 3+3 law is likely to get the nod at the GCC summit in Doha next month, Jaffar, who was part of the UAE delegation, said plans were drawn up to address the growing number of foreign workers in the region.

The 3+3 law proposes a residency cap of six years for unskilled labourers. If the law is passed, then unskilled workers will come to work in a GCC country with a three-year labour contract which can only be renewed once.

However the law would only be applied separately to each country, which means that a labourer could continue to work in the GCC after completing six years but not in the same country.

Approved

An 11 point plan was discussed and approved by the ministers to limit the number of foreign workers in the GCC.

The growing number of expatriates in the region has become a matter of grave concern to local governments as unemployment levels have also risen proportionately.

Jaffar also said any new regulations would be implemented in coordination with countries sending manpower.

"We have signed agreements with eight Asian countries and the 'Columbo Process' meeting in January, to be held in the capital, would act as a platform where the sending and receiving countries would discuss common issues. Following this meeting, the Abu Dhabi Decree would be declared."

Columbo Process is the name for the annual meeting of labour exporting countries and the major importing countries. It is the first time that this initiative, which started three years ago, is being hosted in Abu Dhabi.

The decree will deal with two main points. Firstly, it will define the term "temporary contractual workers" and put this term to use in the labour laws.

Secondly, the focus would be on equipping the labourers with knowledge and increasing their awareness in order to avoid being exploited.

This law shows people who waste life here are fools. I hope that Arab leaders will try to be more considerate of workers.
Vinod
Dubai,UAE
Posted: November 25, 2007, 07:47

Unskilled labourers are experienced labourers. If this law is implemented, there will not be any unskilled but experienced labourers to work, only fresh candidates.
Ibrahim
Abu Dhabi,UAE
Posted: November 25, 2007, 07:22

This will be bad for the country as the companies will have to educate new workers every six years. More accidents will happen. The quality of the work will sink. I can not see any good in the new law. It will not lower the unemployment as I am sure Emiratis do not want to do that kind of work.
Maryam
Sharjah,UAE
Posted: November 25, 2007, 03:32