Saudi deputy FM meets Sudan's Sovereign Council chief in Port Sudan    Kuwait, India to elevate bilateral relations to strategic partnership Sheikh Mishal awards Mubarak Al-Kabir Medal to Modi    MoH to penalize 5 health practitioners for professional violations    Al-Samaani: Saudi Arabia to work soon on a comprehensive review of the legal system    Environment minister inaugurates Yanbu Grain Handling Terminal    Germany's attack suspect reportedly offered reward to target Saudi ambassador    U.S. Navy jet shot down in 'friendly fire' incident over Red Sea    Israeli strikes in Gaza kill at least 20 people, including five children    Trudeau's leadership under threat as NDP withdraws support, no-confidence vote looms    Arabian Gulf Cup begins with dramatic draws and a breathtaking ceremony in Kuwait    GACA report: 928 complaints filed by passengers against airlines in November    Riyadh Season 5 draws record number of over 12 million visitors    Fury vs. Usyk: Anticipation builds ahead of Riyadh's boxing showdown    Saudi Arabia to compete in 2025 and 2027 CONCACAF Gold Cup tournaments    Marianne Jean-Baptiste on Oscars buzz for playing 'difficult' woman    PDC collaboration with MEDLOG Saudi to introduce new cold storage facilities in King Abdullah Port Investment of SR300 million to enhance logistics capabilities in Saudi Arabia    Al Shabab announces departure of coach Vítor Pereira    My kids saw my pain on set, says Angelina Jolie    Legendary Indian tabla player Zakir Hussain dies at 73    Eminem sets Riyadh ablaze with unforgettable debut at MDLBEAST Soundstorm    Order vs. Morality: Lessons from New York's 1977 Blackout    India puts blockbuster Pakistani film on hold    The Vikings and the Islamic world    Filipino pilgrim's incredible evolution from an enemy of Islam to its staunch advocate    Exotic Taif Roses Simulation Performed at Taif Rose Festival    Asian shares mixed Tuesday    Weather Forecast for Tuesday    Saudi Tourism Authority Participates in Arabian Travel Market Exhibition in Dubai    Minister of Industry Announces 50 Investment Opportunities Worth over SAR 96 Billion in Machinery, Equipment Sector    HRH Crown Prince Offers Condolences to Crown Prince of Kuwait on Death of Sheikh Fawaz Salman Abdullah Al-Ali Al-Malek Al-Sabah    HRH Crown Prince Congratulates Santiago Peña on Winning Presidential Election in Paraguay    SDAIA Launches 1st Phase of 'Elevate Program' to Train 1,000 Women on Data, AI    41 Saudi Citizens and 171 Others from Brotherly and Friendly Countries Arrive in Saudi Arabia from Sudan    Saudi Arabia Hosts 1st Meeting of Arab Authorities Controlling Medicines    General Directorate of Narcotics Control Foils Attempt to Smuggle over 5 Million Amphetamine Pills    NAVI Javelins Crowned as Champions of Women's Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO) Competitions    Saudi Karate Team Wins Four Medals in World Youth League Championship    Third Edition of FIFA Forward Program Kicks off in Riyadh    Evacuated from Sudan, 187 Nationals from Several Countries Arrive in Jeddah    SPA Documents Thajjud Prayer at Prophet's Mosque in Madinah    SFDA Recommends to Test Blood Sugar at Home Two or Three Hours after Meals    SFDA Offers Various Recommendations for Safe Food Frying    SFDA Provides Five Tips for Using Home Blood Pressure Monitor    SFDA: Instant Soup Contains Large Amounts of Salt    Mawani: New shipping service to connect Jubail Commercial Port to 11 global ports    Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques Delivers Speech to Pilgrims, Citizens, Residents and Muslims around the World    Sheikh Al-Issa in Arafah's Sermon: Allaah Blessed You by Making It Easy for You to Carry out This Obligation. Thus, Ensure Following the Guidance of Your Prophet    Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques addresses citizens and all Muslims on the occasion of the Holy month of Ramadan    







Thank you for reporting!
This image will be automatically disabled when it gets reported by several people.



India seeks higher pay for its workers
Published in The Saudi Gazette on 18 - 11 - 2014

RIYADH — India is pressing the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries to raise the wages of millions of Indians working there, in a drive that could secure it billions of dollars in fresh income but risks pricing some of its citizens out of the market.

Over 5 million Indian nationals are believed to be employed in the oil exporting states of the Gulf, the single largest group in a migrant worker population of more than 20 million.

Migrants account for nearly half of the roughly 50 million population of the six-nation GCC.

Over the past seven months, Indian diplomats in Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, Oman, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) have sharply increased the minimum salaries that they recommend for Indian workers at private and public firms in those states.

“We want the Indian workforce to be paid higher salaries. Inflation, the value of the Indian currency and a rise in the cost of living in the Gulf were the factors that led to the decision,” Y.S. Kataria, a spokesman for the Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs (MOIA) in New Delhi, told Reuters.
Officials in at least some GCC nations have expressed displeasure, and the strategy could backfire if those countries end up hiring more workers from elsewhere in the world.

“Of course it will encourage companies to look at Bangladesh and Pakistan as more viable options to get migrant workers,” said Mohammed Jindran, managing director of UAE-based recruitment agency Overseas Labour Supply.

The Indian government cannot dictate the pay of its citizens in the Gulf — decisions to hire workers are made by labor recruiters in individual countries, which have not set minimum wages for migrants and usually prohibit union activity by them.

However, the recruiters must rely on the cooperation of local authorities to operate in India. An internal memorandum prepared by the MOIA, sent last month and seen by Reuters, says that if workers are offered wages below specified minimums, ministry officials “would deny emigration clearance.”

In Saudi Arabia, the Indian embassy lifted the recommended minimum salary posted on its website to SR1,200 ($320) a month earlier this year from SR670. In the UAE, the minimum wage for Indian blue-collar workers rose to 1,500 dirhams ($409) in recent weeks from 1,200 dirhams last year, Jindran said.

Even when Gulf recruiters agree to certain wage levels, the numbers do not necessarily stick. Some workers are promised one salary when they sign up in their home country, then forced to renegotiate lower wages when they arrive in the Gulf.

India's role as a top labor supplier means its drive cannot be totally ignored by recruiters, and it could have a big impact in some countries and industries. But there may be a backlash. Another MOIA official said India's pay demands had met initial resistance in all six GCC countries, while two of the countries had threatened to reduce their Indian workforces and hire more, lower-paid workers from Bangladesh and Nepal instead.

Ahmed Al-Fahaid, Saudi deputy labour minister for international affairs, told Sky News Arabia last month: “If this is a decision that is applied throughout India as a whole, meaning no one gets out of India for work unless with that limit, then this is a sovereign decision for the country and we will not interfere,” Fahaid said.

“But if it is a special decision to raise wages for whoever comes to work in the Kingdom, then we oppose it and do not accept it, as it would be an act of discrimination and we don't accept that in international agreements.”

If India's efforts to secure higher pay succeed, they could boost its economy, because migrants send much of their pay home. India received $69 billion as remittances in 2012; a 2010 central bank study found Gulf nations accounted for 31 percent.

Higher wages could also impact many companies. Fawwaz Al-Khodari, chief executive of Saudi builder Abdullah Abdul Mohsin Al-Khodari, said profits in the sector might be squeezed by demands from governments of some labour-exporting countries.

“In cases where salaries have been SR800 to SR900, we are now hearing talk of SR1,500 as a minimum salary, which is a huge increase...Clearly this would become a major issue in the contracting industry.” — Reuters


Clic here to read the story from its source.