Okaz/Saudi Gazette

DAMMAM — Saad Al-Hammad, spokesman of the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development (MHRSD), said that there are 43 companies that will be allowed to carry out direct recruitment of Indonesian domestic workers through the ‘single channel’ system.

“The channel will be under an electronic system between Saudi Arabia and Indonesia so as to ensure the protection of the rights of the parties involved in the contractual relationship as well as to enhance the close monitoring by the ministry,” he said while speaking to Okaz/Saudi Gazette.

Al-Hammad said that the single-channel project for the employment of Indonesian workers aims to simplify the recruitment procedures and protect the rights of all parties involved in the contractual relationship. “In the past, the contractual relationship was carried out in an inaccurate manner, and there were only a few recruitment companies that could reach the Indonesian workers and that was one of the reasons for the low number of Indonesian workers in the Kingdom,” he said while noting that the costs of services while hiring Indonesian domestic help were not affordable for most members of the society.

The spokesman said that the agreement with Indonesia will be made only through recruitment companies. “This will contribute to accelerate the inflow of Indonesian domestic workers, as well as to facilitate recruitment procedures and protect the rights of the parties to the contractual relationship, which enhances the diversity of nationalities of domestic workers to serve the requirements and needs of the Saudi labor market,” he added.

It is noteworthy that Saudi Deputy Minister of Human Resources and Social Development for Labor Dr. Abdullah Abuthunain and Indonesia’s Minister of Manpower Ida Fauziyah signed last Thursday an agreement for the ‘Single-Channel’ project to resume the recruitment of Indonesian domestic workers to Saudi Arabia in a number of professions. Under the deal, recruitment will be made through recruitment companies effective from the date of signing the agreement.

The agreement was concluded at a ceremony held in the island of Bali, in the presence of Saudi Deputy Minister for International Affairs Dr. Adnan Al-Naim and other officials. This project comes within the framework of the keenness of the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development to unify the channel for the recruitment of Indonesian domestic workers as well as to facilitate the recruitment process from Indonesia. This aims to protect the rights of all parties involved in the contractual relationship, and diversify the nationalities of domestic workers to serve the requirements and needs of the Saudi labor market.

The signing of the agreement is the outcome of the intensive efforts to break the deadlock with regard to the recruitment of house workers after a hiatus of 11 years. Indonesia suspended sending housemaids to Saudi Arabia and other countries in the region in 2011 following the execution of a housemaid after she was convicted of killing her Saudi employer. Later, Indonesia agreed with the Kingdom and other Middle Eastern countries to send domestic workers but the outbreak of coronavirus had delayed their arrival.