Labour pact with Oman must wait
The India-Oman labour pact has been delayed after differences arose between the two countries on the Labour Welfare MoU in the last minute.
By TNN |
NEW DELHI: Oman and India will continue negotiating a labour pact, which was originally scheduled to be signed during the visit of Omani deputy prime minister Sayyid Fahd Bin Mahmood al-Said.
The labour pact, which would benefit the large Indian workforce in Oman, has been delayed after differences arose between the two countries on the draft of the Labour Welfare MoU in the last minute. The plan was to sign the pact during the four-day visit of the deputy prime minister which started on Wednesday. It is understood the Omani side introduced changes at the last minute.
Officials said that the government felt it needed time to go through the last-minute changes and did not want to sign the labour pact, which would affect lives of thousands of workers, in a hurry.
The draft MoU included measures to check certain labour practices including exploitation of workers by “unscrupulous recruitment agents’’ in India and compulsory requirement of a contract between the employer and employee. The pact also looks at setting up a mechanism to monitor labour conditions for Indian workers. Minister of state for external affairs E Ahamed had handed over the draft of the MoU to Omani ministry of manpower in October.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh will meet the Omani deputy prime minister for talks on Friday and two minor pacts on setting up a training centre of developing entrepreneurship in Oman and an institute of plastic technology are scheduled to be signed. Mr Singh is expected to take up the issue of the welfare of Indian labourers with Mr Sayyid Fahd during the Friday’s talks.
The government has been trying to push labour pacts and have them implemented in Gulf nations after worsening conditions of Indian labourers. The MoU with Oman was modelled on the labour pact that has been finalised with the UAE.
That labour pact includes scrutiny of past contracts and setting up of a grievance mechanism cell. Even though the UAE has agreed to the labour pact in principle, it is still in the process of implementing the provisions.
But in the midst of the changes, a protest in the UAE by over 2,600 workers, mainly Indian workers, highlighted the issue of low wages and bad working conditions. The protest against a construction company turned violent and subsequently some workers were deported. The UAE government also implemented an amnesty scheme for illegal foreign workers to regularise their status under the law or leave the country without inviting penalties.
The labour pact, which would benefit the large Indian workforce in Oman, has been delayed after differences arose between the two countries on the draft of the Labour Welfare MoU in the last minute. The plan was to sign the pact during the four-day visit of the deputy prime minister which started on Wednesday. It is understood the Omani side introduced changes at the last minute.
Officials said that the government felt it needed time to go through the last-minute changes and did not want to sign the labour pact, which would affect lives of thousands of workers, in a hurry.
The draft MoU included measures to check certain labour practices including exploitation of workers by “unscrupulous recruitment agents’’ in India and compulsory requirement of a contract between the employer and employee. The pact also looks at setting up a mechanism to monitor labour conditions for Indian workers. Minister of state for external affairs E Ahamed had handed over the draft of the MoU to Omani ministry of manpower in October.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh will meet the Omani deputy prime minister for talks on Friday and two minor pacts on setting up a training centre of developing entrepreneurship in Oman and an institute of plastic technology are scheduled to be signed. Mr Singh is expected to take up the issue of the welfare of Indian labourers with Mr Sayyid Fahd during the Friday’s talks.
The government has been trying to push labour pacts and have them implemented in Gulf nations after worsening conditions of Indian labourers. The MoU with Oman was modelled on the labour pact that has been finalised with the UAE.
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That labour pact includes scrutiny of past contracts and setting up of a grievance mechanism cell. Even though the UAE has agreed to the labour pact in principle, it is still in the process of implementing the provisions.
But in the midst of the changes, a protest in the UAE by over 2,600 workers, mainly Indian workers, highlighted the issue of low wages and bad working conditions. The protest against a construction company turned violent and subsequently some workers were deported. The UAE government also implemented an amnesty scheme for illegal foreign workers to regularise their status under the law or leave the country without inviting penalties.
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