The United Nations labour body said on Sunday that Qatar’s new labour laws effectively end the country’s ‘kafala’ employment system. This law has been criticized for a long time. The International Labour Organization (ILO) said that now migrant workers can change jobs before their contract ends without taking permission from their current employers. According to an estimate, there are more than 20 lakh migrant workers in Qatar. Most of the workers working in Qatar are from India, Nepal, Pakistan and Bangladesh. The total population of Qatar is 28 lakh. That is, in total there are more than 27 lakh foreign workers in Qatar.
The ILO said that Qatar has set the minimum wage for workers at 1,000 Qatari Riyal (Rs 20,110). It will take about six months for these laws to come into effect. The ILO said that under the minimum wage law, the employer will have to pay an allowance for accommodation and food in case they do not provide it. Qatar is going to host the Football World Cup in 2022 and before that this is being considered a major labor reform.
