Bahrain’ LMRA cautions against hiring of part-time expats

ham

 

The sector offers temporary jobs with attractive salaries usually during summer/winter sales and major exhibitions and events. Banks, hotels and even airlines are among the establishments which generally hire expatriates on a temporary basis for promotions.

 

 

 

“Such employments are illegal. Expatriates can only work for employers who have provided them with work visas. Students and housewives are dependents and not allowed to work as per the Labour Reform Act (19) of 2006,” LMRA acting head of public relations, Waheed Balushi told the Tribune yesterday. “Housewives are only allowed to work in the health and education sectors,” he clarified.

 

 

The LMRA, which took over services on July 1, is moving at a rapid pace to open up the labour market and make Bahrainis workers employers’ first choice.

 

 

One of the LMRA’s first acts was to prepare a database of expatriates and weed out illegal workers.

 

 

No figures are available but it is estimated that hundreds of foreigners lost jobs because companies had to terminate services of those not sponsored by them. The layoffs opened up new job opportunities for Bahrainis.

 

 

The second notable move is the issuance of invoices to companies for the BD10 fee charged for every employed expatriate. The fees, estimated to be BD3,000,000 plus, will be used to train the Bahraini workforce to meet labour market requirements.

 

 

With its latest advisory to companies not to hire expatriate students and housewives as part-time employees, the LMRA has again opened up new avenues for citizens.

 

 

Though inroads to the job market are being created for Bahrainis, employers say few take advantage of it.

 

 

“We are ready to take them but not many apply. Those who do expect to be retained as fulltime staff and demand a high salary. They forget that they are just entering the job market,” an employee from a company promoting discount cards for hotels said.

 

 

“The promotion sector was possibly the best entry level job for anyone, especially a good experience for those looking at a career in marketing and advertising,” he said.

 

 

“Earlier the focus was on applicants with strong English speaking skills as most customers speak English but now companies are looking for bilingual staff.

 

 

“Many GCC residents visit Bahrain and a person fluent in Arabic and English would be an asset for any organisation,” he said. “But prospective employees should look at the ground reality. “Companies hire temporary staff because the promotions are for a few days.

 

 

They cannot guarantee full-time jobs at the end of an event,” he said, adding that youngsters should take advantage of these jobs, build contacts and look for prospective employers.

 

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *