The Ministry of Labor said that the minister Dr. Ali bin Nasser Al-Ghufais has approved the transfer of sponsorship for 13 housemaids, noting that the measure of allowing the home servants and those sharing them the same legal situation aims at regulating the labor market through giving chance for a housemaid or the like to transfer to another sponsor unless he/she is not the cause of the incident of transfer. The new measure stipulates that a housemaid or the like will have the right to transfer his/her sponsorship if it was verified that the sponsor failed to pay a three consecutive or separate month's salary without the involvement of the laborer, or he failed to receive a housemaid on her first arrival at the inlet post, or did not show up to receive her at the temporary accommodation house for 15 days from her arrival in the Kingdom, or failed to issue her a work permit license or failed to renew it for 30 days, starting the date of its issuance or renewal. Also a foreign laborer could transfer his/her sponsorship if the sponsor dared to rent the service of the laborer to another without the knowledge of the laborer or assigned her to work at the expense of non-relatives or do hazardous work that threatens her/his health or safety. Housemaids will also have the right to quit their sponsors if it was proved that they are mistreated or if her/his suit before the justice against the sponsor was prolonged without action been taken, provided that the laborer is not involved in the delay of ruling. Also, if the employer has filed a false complaint that his employee was absent from work or he or his proxy failed to show up at the court for two sessions or because of his absence for travel or prison or death, resulting in the delay of three successive months payment or any individual cases to be approved by the minister, the sponsorship could be transferred. The decision also stipulates that the new employer to whom the service was transferred will have the right to offer a maximum 15 day paid probationary period for the laborer, whereas he will pay the government-prescribed fees for the transfer service, including the SR150-per-day cost of her stay at the government accommodation house.
