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Bahrain - Compensation & Benefit Legislation

CAPITAL

Manama

 

CLIMATE

Arid. Mild and pleasant winters and very hot, humid summers.

 

LANGUAGES

Arabic, English, Farsi and Urdu.

 

LEGAL SYSTEM

Based both on Islamic law and English common law.

 

CURRENCY

Bahraini Dinars (1 USD = 0.37720 BHD as of April 15, 2002)

 

BAHRAIN - COST-OF-LIVING

ERI's Relocation Assessor is a recommended source for cost-of-living data.

 

BAHRAIN - EMBASSY/CONSULATES

U.S. Embassy at Manama

Building No. 979, Road 3119

Block 321

Zinj District

Manama, Bahrain

Telephone: [973] 273-300

Fax: [973] 270-547

http://www.usembassy.com.bh/

 

Embassy of the Kingdom of Bahrain at Washington D.C.

3502 International Drive N.W.

Washington D.C. 20008

Telephone: (202) 342-0741

Fax: (202) 362-2192

E-mail: info@bahrainembassy.org

http://www.bahrainembassy.org

 

BAHRAIN - HOLIDAYS

 

BAHRAIN - LEAVE

Annual Leave: Minimum 21 days of paid annual leave (upon completion of one year of employment).

 

Maternity Leave: 60 days paid maternity leave.

 

BAHRAIN - MINIMUM AGE

The minimum age for employment is 14 years of age. Juveniles between the ages of 14 and 16 may not be employed in hazardous conditions or at night, and may not work more than 6 hours per day or on a piecework basis.

 

Section 6.d. Acceptable Conditions of Work, Bahrain – Report of Human Rights Practices, 2001, U.S. Department of State.

 

BAHRAIN - MINIMUM REMUNERATION

Minimum wage scales, set by government decree, exist for public sector employees, and generally provide a decent standard of living for a worker and family. The minimum wage for the public sector is 105 dinars a month (approximately $278.25). There is no minimum wage for the private sector. Wages in the private sector are determined on a contract basis.

 

(Section 6.e. Acceptable Conditions of Work, Bahrain – Report of Human Rights Practices, 2001, U.S. Department of State.)

 

BAHRAIN - REMUNERATION

ERI's Geographic and Salary Assessors are recommended sources for international remuneration covering 189 countries.

 

BAHRAIN - REPORT OF HUMAN RIGHTS PRACTICES (2001, U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE)

Section 6 Worker Rights

 

a. The Right of Association

 

The Constitution recognizes the right of workers to organize; however, the Government bans independent trade unions. Government regulations do not mention the right to organize, and only prescribe the establishment of Joint Labor-Management Committees (JLC's).

 

Labor regulations permit the formation of elected workers' committees in larger companies. Worker representation is based on the JLC system, which was established by ministerial decree. One new JLC was established in November 2000, bringing the total to 20.

 

The JLC's are composed of equal numbers of appointed management representatives and worker representatives who are elected from among and by company employees in elections organized by management. Each committee is chaired alternately by a management and worker representative. The selection of worker representatives appears to be fair. Under the law, the Ministry of Interior may exclude worker candidates with criminal records or those deemed a threat to national security, but the Government has not taken such action in recent years.

 

The elected worker representatives of the JLC's select the 11 members of the General Committee of Bahrain workers (GCBW), which was established by law in 1983, and which oversees and coordinates the work of the JLC's. The GCBW also hears complaints from citizen and foreign workers and helps them bring their complaints to the attention of the Ministry of Labor or the courts. Representatives to the GCBW are elected to 3-year terms, and have included workers from a variety of occupations, including Sunni and Shi'a Muslims, foreign workers, and one woman. Although the Government and company management are not represented on the GCBW, the Ministry of Labor closely monitors the body's activities and a Ministry representative attends and supervises GCBW general meetings. The Ministry approves the GCBW's rules and the distribution of the GCBW's funds. Some senior JLC and GCBW officials have been harassed. The JLC/GCBW system represents nearly 70 percent of the country's native industrial workers. Both the Government and labor representatives readily admit that nonindustrial workers and foreign workers clearly are underrepresented in the system. The Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs supports the formation of JLC's in all public and private sector companies that employ more than 200 workers, and a JLC was established in the textile sector in 1999.

 

Although foreign workers constitute 67 percent of the work force, they are underrepresented in the GCBW. Foreign workers participate in the JLC elections, and five foreign workers currently serve on JLC's. However, none sits on the board of the GCBW. It is a long-term goal of both the Government and the GCBW to replace foreign workers with citizens throughout all sectors of the economy and to create new jobs for citizens seeking employment.

 

The Labor Law does not address the right to strike, and there were no strikes during the year. The 1974 National Security Act, which the Amir annulled in February, had prohibited actions perceived to be detrimental to the "existing relationship" between employers and employees or to the economic health of the State.

 

Internationally affiliated trade unions do not exist. The GCBW represents workers in the Arab Labor Organization, but does not belong to any international trade union organizations.

 

b. The Right to Organize and Bargain Collectively

 

The Government effectively denies workers the right to organize and bargain collectively. The Labor Law does not permit this right outside the JLC system. While the JLC's are empowered to discuss labor disputes, organize workers' services, and discuss wages, working conditions, and productivity, workers have no independent, recognized mechanism for representing their interests on these or other labor-related issues. Minimum wage rates for public sector employees are established by decrees issued by the Council of Ministers. Private businesses generally follow the Government's lead in establishing their wage rates.

 

There are two export-processing zones (EPZ's). Labor law and practice are the same in the EPZ's as in the rest of the country.

 

c. Prohibition of Forced or Compulsory Labor

 

Forced or compulsory labor is prohibited by law; however, in practice the labor laws apply for the most part only to citizens, and abuses occur, particularly in the cases of domestic servants and those working illegally. The law also prohibits forced and bonded child labor, and the Government enforces this prohibition effectively.

 

Foreign workers, who make up at least 67 percent of the workforce, in many cases arrive in the country under the sponsorship of an employer and then switch jobs while continuing to pay a fee to their original sponsor. This practice makes it difficult to monitor and control the employment conditions of domestic and other workers. The Government took no substantive action during the year to stop the practice.

 

Amendments to the Labor Law passed in 1993 stiffened the penalties for job switching to include jail sentences of up to 6 months for the sponsor of every illegally sponsored worker; however, sponsors have not received jail sentences. In such cases, the workers involved usually are deported as illegal immigrants after the case is concluded. During the summer and fall of 1998, the Government conducted an amnesty program under which undocumented foreign workers were permitted either to legalize their status or leave the country without penalty. On October 1, 2000, the Government again gave illegal immigrants 3 months to legalize their status or leave the country.

 

The sponsorship system leads to additional abuses. Unskilled foreign workers in essence become indentured workers, and are unable to change employment or leave the country without their sponsors' consent. There are numerous credible reports that employers withhold salaries from their foreign workers for months, even years, at a time, and may refuse to grant them the necessary permission to leave the country. The Government and the courts generally work to rectify abuses brought to their attention, but they otherwise focus little attention on the problem, and the fear of deportation or employer retaliation prevents many foreign workers from making complaints to the authorities (see Section 6.e.).

 

Labor Laws do not apply to domestic servants. There are numerous credible reports that domestic servants, especially women, are forced to work 12- or 16-hour days, given little time off, malnourished, and subjected to verbal and physical abuse, including sexual molestation and rape. Between 30 and 40 percent of the attempted suicide cases handled by the Government's psychiatric hospitals are foreign maids (see Section 6.e.).

 

Foreign women employed as hotel and restaurant staff typically are locked in a communal house when not working and driven to work in a van. Many are involved in prostitution and reportedly trade sexual favors with hotel managers in exchange for time off from work (see Section 6.f.).

 

d. Status of Child Labor Practices and Minimum Age for Employment

 

The minimum age for employment is 14 years of age. Juveniles between the ages of 14 and 16 may not be employed in hazardous conditions or at night, and may not work more than 6 hours per day or on a piecework basis. Child labor laws are enforced effectively by Ministry of Labor inspectors in the industrial sector; child labor outside that sector is monitored less effectively, but it is not believed to be significant outside family-operated businesses, and even in such businesses it is not widespread. Some children work in the market areas as car washers and porters.

 

The law prohibits forced and bonded child labor, and the Government enforces this prohibition effectively (see Section 6.c.).

 

In February the Government ratified ILO Convention 182 on the worst forms of child labor.

 

e. Acceptable Conditions of Work

 

Minimum wage scales, set by government decree, exist for public sector employees, and generally provide a decent standard of living for a worker and family. The minimum wage for the public sector is $278.25 (105 dinars) a month. Wages in the private sector are determined on a contract basis. For foreign workers, employers consider benefits such as annual trips home, housing, and education bonuses as part of the salary.

 

The Labor Law, enforced by the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs, mandates acceptable conditions of work for all adult workers, including adequate standards regarding hours of work (maximum 48 hours per week) and occupational safety and health.

 

The Ministry enforces the law with periodic inspections and routine fines for violators. The press often performs an ombudsman function on labor problems, reporting job disputes and the results of labor cases brought before the courts. Once a worker has lodged a complaint, the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs opens an investigation and often takes remedial action. The Fourth High Court has jurisdiction over cases involving alleged violations of the Labor Law. Complaints brought before the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs that cannot be settled through arbitration by law must be referred to the Court within 15 days. In practice most employers prefer to settle such disputes through arbitration, particularly since the court and labor law generally are considered to favor the employee.

 

Under the Labor Law, workers have the right to remove themselves from dangerous work situations without jeopardy to their continued employment.

 

The Labor Law specifically favors citizens over foreign workers and Arab foreigners over other foreign workers in hiring and firing. Because employers include housing and other allowances in their salary scales, foreign workers legally may be paid lower regular wages than their citizen counterparts, although they sometimes receive the same or a greater total compensation package because of home leave and holiday allowances. Western foreign workers and citizen workers are paid comparable wages, with total compensation packages often significantly greater for the former. Women are entitled to 60 days of paid maternity leave and nursing periods during the day. However, women generally are paid less than men are.

 

In 1993 the Government strengthened the Labor Law by decree of the Amir, announcing that significant fines and jail sentences would be imposed upon private sector employers who fail to pay wages required by law. This law applies equally to employers of citizens and foreign workers and was intended to reduce abuses against foreign workers, who at times are denied the required salaries (see Section 6.c.). The law provides equal protection to citizen and foreign workers; however, all foreign workers require sponsorship by citizens or locally based institutions and companies. According to representatives of several embassies with large numbers of workers in the country, the Government generally is responsive to embassy requests to investigate foreign worker complaints regarding unpaid wages and mistreatment. However, foreign workers, particularly those from developing countries, often are unwilling to report abuses for fear of losing residence rights and having to return to their countries of origin. Sponsors are able to cancel the residence permit of any person under their sponsorship and thereby block them for a year from obtaining entry or residence visas from another sponsor; however, the sponsor may be subject to sanctions for wrongful dismissal. Foreign women who work as domestic workers often are beaten or sexually abused. Between 30 and 40 percent of attempted suicide cases handled by the Government's psychiatric hospitals are foreign maids (see Section 6.c.).

 

It is a long-term goal of both the Government and the GCBW to replace foreign workers with citizens throughout all sectors of the economy and to create new jobs for citizens seeking employment.

 

f. Trafficking in Persons

 

The law does not specifically prohibit trafficking in persons, and there are reports that some foreign workers are recruited for employment on the basis of fraudulent contracts and then forced into domestic servitude or sexual exploitation. Workers from the Philippines, Ethiopia, India, Russia, and Belarus have reported being forced into domestic servitude and sexual exploitation.

 

The Government has not yet made significant efforts to combat trafficking. It does not recognize that trafficking is a problem because foreign workers travel to the country voluntarily. The Government does not devote resources to combat trafficking in persons. Victims of trafficking may seek assistance from their embassies. The Government does not provide assistance to victims.

 

BAHRAIN - SOCIAL SECURITY

Social Security Office of International Programs:

 

http://www.ssa.gov/SSA_Home.html

 

BAHRAIN - STANDARD WORKWEEK

A six-day, 48-hour workweek is standard. Workers typically get Friday off with pay provided that they have worked at least six days that workweek.