Riyadh newspaper THE Ministry of Labor is seriously working to adopt the word “employer” instead of “Kafeel”. This would afford expats working in the Kingdom the freedom to travel as and when he likes. The idea that we do not hold foreign workers hostage by keeping their passports is a measure I wholeheartedly support. However, will this change put an end to the many problems relating to the trade of work visas and thousands of stray workers? In my opinion, the answer is most definitely an emphatic ‘No'. Unfortunately, there are already too many illegal workers in the Kingdom. Moreover, many small-scale businesses rely exclusively on workers who fall into the stray category. And then there is the matter of how millions pour out of the country in remittances directly as a result of this unregulated workforce finding gainful employment with unscrupulous bosses. These are questions that need to be answered honestly and accurately if we are to truly begin to address these systemic issues. In order to clean and purge our local market from these illegal workers – and their subsequent cover up – the ministries of Labor, Commerce, and Municipal and Rural Affairs should work hand in hand in an integrated fashion. We also need draconian legislation which incriminates the violators. The size of the problem means there will be no quick-fixes. However, given the opportunity cost, we cannot afford to bury our heads in the sand in the private hope that the problem will somehow disappear if we ignore it long enough. As the Kingdom's profile continues to grow on the world stage thanks to the efforts of King Abdullah, our authorities have a moral obligation to tighten control over the laissez-faire labor market once and for all. __
