The connection between migrant workers and their employers, known as kafeel, is governed by the kafala system, sometimes called the sponsorship system. As expressed by the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR), the Kafala system is extensively utilized in Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries; Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Jordan and Lebanon (CFR). However, the Georgetown Journal of international Affairs (GJIA) declared that “Temporary labor migration programs also exist in other parts of the world, where essentially the worker is tied to one employer or one sector of employment” (GJIA). GJIA emphasizes that this kind of labor production is not exclusive to Middle Eastern nations.
Employers or sponsors get the necessary official authorizations to employ migrant workers through the kafala system. Typically, these sponsors pay for accommodation and transportation expenses, either in shared dorms or, in the case of domestic workers, in their homes (CFR). In specific situations, like as in Bahrain, the government serves as the sponsor rather than private employers. These sponsors frequently work with hiring companies in the workers’ home countries to locate and bring them to the host country (CFR).
The Kafala System has caused disputes with some considering it a violation of human rights, such as The Lawfare Institute, Human Rights Watch (HRW1), and Boston University (BU) and others seeing it as a chance for economic progress “by offering higher pay than are offered by jobs in workers’ home countries” (Medium). Many migrant laborers choose jobs in their Kafala host nations in order to get a higher wage, despite the fact that the work is often risky, because “the system leaves migrant workers vulnerable to exploitation and modern slavery” (Walk Free). These nations often provide greater earnings than workers can earn at home, and many send money back to their family (CFR). According to the Arab Gulf States Institute in Washington (AGSIW), “Remittances are the largest source of foreign currency earnings in low- and middle-income countries.” However, human rights organizations like Migrant-Rights, claim that the Kafala system exposes workers to abuse, such as forced labor and threats. Some media sources have even referred to the situation as “modern-day slavery,” emphasizing the major difficulties with this system (Migrant-Rights).
The Kafala system has been strongly criticized by international organizations and civil society, with many pushing for its replacement with a more fair and moral system for labor migration management. As expressed by the Migrant Forum in Asia (MFA), “Currently, this has shifted to advocacy for reform largely due to the assessment that the GCC countries lack political will to replace the Kafala system coupled with the perception that sending countries lack necessary bargaining power given their economic dependence on migrant workers’ remittances.”
Therefore, only three countries have taken steps toward reform. Bahrain moved sponsorship to a public authority in 2009 (MFA), providing employees more working selection, but later regulations weakened these advances. Kuwait permitted workers to change employers in 2011 but excluded domestic workers, and established self-sponsorship for highly educated workers, leaving others dependent on their employers (MFA). As for Saudi Arabia, the nation proposed shifting sponsorship from people to recruiting companies (MFA). As outlined by the MFA, “As recruitment agencies also carry the risk of abusive and exploitative practices it remains to be seen whether or not as sponsors being monitored, they will off er an improvement in protection for migrant workers”.
Despite that, as reported by the Human Rights Watch, “Qatar is the first country in the Arab Gulf region to allow all migrant workers to change jobs before the end of their contracts without first obtaining their employer’s consent” (HRW2). In the case of Lebanon, for example, as presented by the Harvard International Review, this year, Lebanon began efforts to modify the Kafala system. The Labor Ministry has proposed new laws that will limit work to 48 hours per week, pay overtime, and give extra benefits to make the Kafala system less restrictive. However, it is uncertain if these limits will actually be applied (HIR).
These accomplishments suggest that other countries may make comparable efforts to improve working conditions and create more opportunities for migrant workers, as these occupations provide income and a chance for a better future in their home countries. Based on Comparative Migration Studies, “The availability of jobs and prospect of remittances that help improve living standards and reduce impoverishments back home are the primary reasons why labor migrants have been concentrated in the GCC region” (CMS).
References
AGSIW: https://agsiw.org/economic-contraction-across-the-gulf-chokes-the-flow-of-remittances-to-south-asia/
BU: https://sites.bu.edu/pardeeatlas/opinions/op-ed-the-kafala-sponsorship-system-fuels-modern-day-slavery/
CFR: https://www.cfr.org/backgrounder/what-kafala-system
CMS: https://comparativemigrationstudies.springeropen.com/articles/10.1186/s40878-024-00390-3
GJIA: https://gjia.georgetown.edu/2023/02/01/the-kafala-system-a-conversation-with-ryszard-cholewinski/
HIR: https://hir.harvard.edu/modern-day-slavery-the-kafala-system-in-lebanon/
HRW 1: https://www.hrw.org/news/2022/01/04/lebanons-abusive-kafala-sponsorship-system
HRW 2: https://www.hrw.org/news/2020/09/24/qatar-significant-labor-and-kafala-reforms
The Lawfare Institute: https://www.lawfaremedia.org/article/the-kafala-system-is-facilitating-labor-abuses-in-the-middle-east
Medium: https://buslahr.medium.com/navigating-socioeconomic-progress-unveiling-the-complexities-of-the-kafala-system-047b72ac4f82
MFA: https://webapps.ilo.org/dyn/migpractice/docs/132/PB2.pdf
Migrant-Rights: https://www.migrant-rights.org/2015/03/understanding-kafala-an-archaic-law-at-cross-purposes-with-modern-development/
Walk Free: https://www.walkfree.org/global-slavery-index/findings/spotlights/life-under-the-kafala-system/