Above 60 Employees Important To The Private Sector

There are many calls for the reconsideration for the decision to end the issuance of work permits for those who have reached the age of 60 and over, in addition to holding a high school diploma or less, which will be enforced from early next year, Al Rai reported.

A number of activists and citizens warned the decision will cause Kuwait to become a place only for bachelors, and will force many families to leave the country with the head of the household being unable to stay. Another consequence is many Kuwaiti business owners will be harmed by the decision as they employ such expats, and benefit from their wealth of experiences, which are more important than university degrees, especially since many of them have resided in Kuwait for decades.

These professionals have honed their skills and worked in the roles to garner experience to be able to work diligently, henceforth finding replacements is difficult. Such professions that require extensive experience are jobs like kitchen chef or a trainer, an electrician, a mechanic among others.

Another aspect of the criticism is the failure to acknowledge the humanitarian aspects of the decision, including the loss of family, some of whom may have been born in Kuwait. There is also a lack of a serious study of the labor market in Kuwait and its needs for this category of expert professionals, was mentioned as part of the criticism of the decision.
The respondents to Al Rai daily revealed that the goal of the judiciary on marginal employment can be achieved in other ways, including, for example: increasing fees on residency permits for those over the age of 60, requiring them to pay more for health insurance to not overburden the health system, and dividing them into categories so that the market need for each category is studied.

In this context, the head of the Human Rights Basic Elements Society Dr Yousef Al-Sager expressed his opinion that some individuals from this segment of the population under the decision are possibly owners of companies and do not have the required academic qualification and this will cause major problems. He pointed out these expats have spent all their lives building companies and other profitable entities, then this decision comes to destroy these hard work, and destroy the interconnectedness of some families, expressing his regret because “sometimes a decision is made without knowing the desired benefit from it.”

As for the Chairman of the Board of Directors of the National Integrity Society, Muhammad Dha’ar Al-Otaibi, mentioned to Al Rai daily that the above sixty expats may have specific experiences needed by the labor market, and exceptions must be made according to the need and if the person is looking after a family. He believed that “if the labor market and its need were linked to certificates, this would have been clearer and more accurate instead of specifying a specific age group.”

On his part, MP Saleh Ashour pointed out that the private sector is more knowledgeable and employers should be able to determine the importance of an employee and his ability to work, especially as he bears the costs of his employees, whether salaries, residency fees, end of service or health insurance. He added that it is better to leave him with the decision for renewing the residency and the need for expats.

 

SOURCE : TIMES KUWAIT

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