Bahrain Job Application Dumping Case Attracts Flak By MPs And Activists

August 11, 2008 6:44 p.m. EST

Manama, Bahrain (AHN) - Activists and lawmakers here have expressed shock and surprise at the labor ministry's decision to drop charges against a delivery man who last year dumped in the trash thousands of job applications with personal details.

Parliament member Shaikh Mohammed Khalid of the Al Menbar (Muslim Brotherhood) bloc said several job seekers were affected because of the lenient approach by the ministry.

"The National Employment Program (NEP) initiated by the labor ministry failed in matching the low salaries with the qualifications of the candidate. This specific incident was a big blow for the job seekers of the country who feel they are out of work as the ministry dumped their applications in trash," the MP told AHN.

The incident, which was known as "betrayal of candidates" by MPs, dates back to Aug. 2 last year, when residents of A'ali village found several applications of job-seekers registered under the NEP had been thrown away.

The Ministry of Labor admitted dumping of hundreds of application forms and CVs of jobless Bahrainis and said that the personnel involved in dumping them would be punished. A probe launched by the Ministry revealed that applications from one office location were sent by a truck to the central stores. For reasons that have not been determined, the applications were not accepted and the truck driver accidently discarded them.

The minister, Dr Majeed bin Mohsin Al Alawi, said that an audit by the ministry accounted for a total of 866 documents thrown away. Some application forms contained personal details and confidential information about the candidates, mostly females.

The Ministry claimed that all the job seekers' information was entered in the database.

MP Khalid called for severe action against those behind the act.

He further accused some members of the NEP team of being sectarian by ignoring applications from a particular sect. "Several job seekers in my area have complained of problems they face when they apply for the program. In some cases they are turned away or made fun by the NEP interviewers when they demand better jobs," the lawmaker claimed.

Naader Al Salatna, a member of the committee of unemployment and underpaid, told AHN, "By giving warning and leaving the culprit is not the solution. No one from the authority took the case seriously. If it was the driver's mistake, then he should be punished."

The committee has filed a case at the International Labour Organisation (ILO) to probe the incident. Al Salatna said they prepared a complete report with news clippings, pictures and documents that was submitted to the ILO office in Beirut.

"The problem is that people forget these issues fast. No one wants to follow up and know what happened to those behind this act," he said.

Following the incident, committee members protested in 2007 with the Bahrain Youth Society for Human Rights outside the Ministry of Labor headquarters in Isa Town. Some candidates who found their applications in the dumpster reportedly planned to sue the Ministry. The $80 million NEP project, an initiative by King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa, was launched in January 2007. The ministry offers all technical and financial assistance to private sector institutions, encouraging them to employ jobless Bahrainis.

Those who qualify are categorized according to three employment levels - the craft level for high school certificate holders, who are given a $265 training allowance and assured of a minimum monthly salary of $530; the technical level with a $318 training allowance and minimum monthly salary of $ 663; and the specialist level for university degree holders that provides a $397 training allowance and a monthly $795 minimum salary.

During a recent weekly cabinet session chaired by Prime Minister Shaikh Khalifa bin Salman Al Khalifa, a report by the labor minister issued details of unemployment allowances and integration of job seekers in the market. The report stated that 2,931 job seekers were covered under the unemployment insurance scheme.

The unemployment rate in the country from December until July was 3.8 per cent.

Bahrain is the main financial and banking hub in the region and hosts the U.S. Navy's Fifth Fleet.