JEDDAH: An official delegation from Indonesia is visiting Jeddah Saturday to meet authorities from the Ministry of Labor and seek to resolve issues holding up the recruitment of labor from Indonesia to the Kingdom. Sources told Okaz/Saudi Gazette that the government delegation would also meet with Minister of Labor Adil Fakieh during their visit to the Kingdom, and that discussions will address proposals resulting from the visit earlier this month by the Indonesian recruitment office federation and the numerous workshops held by the Saudi ministry. Strong recommendations have been heard for the Indonesian embassy to remove the conditions it set on Saudis wishing to recruit house workers from Jakarta and the introduction of penalties for Indonesia recruitment offices that fail to abide by agreed conditions. The cost of recruiting workers from Indonesia has risen multiple times since 2008, reaching a peak between 2010 and 2011 of over SR10,000. The rises resulted in an increase in the number of house workers abandoning their sponsors and higher salaries demanded by those workers and others who have overstayed the permitted time of pilgrim visas.
