The Bahraini worker who received the subsidy in exchange would undergo additional government-sponsored training.
The subsidy will be provided for six months after which the company will give the increase.
“The programme is aimed at having all working Bahrainis receive a minimum BD200 salary every month,” according to an official from the ministry’s Committee on Wage Improvement and Productivity.
The ministry report however did not specify how many Bahrainis are still left out of the deal.
The programme is done directly between the government and participating companies but officials at the ministry admitted that there were other companies who still refused to join the programme.
“Some companies did not want to join the programme because after six months, the companies will be shouldering the increase. For some they find that as an added burden on their budgets,” a government training manager said.
Other sectors also expressed doubts if the programme could be sustained and if the workers were satisfied with the deal.
A union member said that BD200 wage per month is still not enough for Bahraini families to cope with the rising cost of living.
“The BD200 wage is still not enough for the average Bahraini household. It won’t take long and the workers will again ask for more,” said Mustapha Ameer, a construction unionist.
Most of the companies which enrolled in the wage subsidy programme come from the construction and industrial sectors.
