By Assan Bah
Fabba Jammeh, Director of Employment at the Ministry of Trade, Regional Integration and Employment (MoTIE), has explained some of the key terms and conditions of the domestic workers selected to go to Saudi Arabia.
He said all contracts were signed before the workers got their visas.
“These contracts were received via private recruitment agencies, who sent them to us for review, before it reached the workers for review and subsequent signatures,” he said.
Jammeh stressed that the contract duration for these workers is two years, which can be extended with amendments such as an increase in wages.
According to him, part of the contract terms include a thirty-day leave during the year, a day’s off during the week and at least 9 hours of rest for the day. He added that part of the contract includes opportunities for capacity building on skills like restaurant management for the workers.
The Middle East has been accused of not being worker-friendly, particularly for domestic workers. However, he said workers were trained on the labour market in Saudi with contract conditions including family settings, climatic conditions and on wages, and on how to identify human trafficking incidents during their pre-departure orientation training.
Some of the key terms are:
‘‘Pay:- The employee’s pay is exclusive. It is a take-home package; the medical insurance is entirely handled by the employer; and on accommodation, the employer should host and feed the employee.
“The rest hours in the contract are at least 9 hours daily, and cannot go below 9 hours. They are also entitled to a 30 day leave yearly and a day’s rest weekly.
“Termination:- either the employer or the employee can terminate, but this should be on good or reasonable grounds, because termination goes with consequences.
‘‘Wages:- Despite the Ministry’s report that they were negotiating with the Saudi authorities for an increase in the payment of these workers during a committee meeting, these workers will be paid US$200, as it was earlier reported, with Jammeh saying, “US$200 is the monthly for beginners. It is not the fixed amount for all the workers.” He said “depending on the worker’s experience in the Gulf states, they would be paid more than US$200.” He further said that the Gambian Embassy in Saudi Arabia will serve as a focal point for these workers so that when issues arise between the worker and the employer, the concerned worker can reach out to the Gambian Embassy in Saudi Arabia for assistance, by identifying the institution to get redress.
According to him, the Saudi Domestic Worker Migration agreement is not a pilot program and the Gambia can send up to five-thousand people (5,000) to Saudi Arabia annually.
“The Agencies in the Gambia will recruit on demand. So anytime we have a request from Saudi Arabia, the private agencies will work according to that number. We are expecting to have more people beyond domestic work. We can have 5,000 Gambian workers per year,” he added.
