Saudi Gazette report JEDDAH – Saudi Manpower Solutions Company will introduce soon a new service called “Raha” or “Comfort” whereby citizens can hire domestic helpers by hour, Saad Al-Badah, Chairman of the recruitment committee at the Saudi Council of Chambers was quoted as saying by an Arabic language daily newspaper on Wednesday. The service will solve several recruitment-related problems, Al-Badah said. A citizen can get a trained domestic helper without having to go to a recruitment office. The service will also end the black market and the exploitation by visa traders, he added. Al-Badah declined to reveal the nationalities of domestic helpers and how much a citizen should pay for the service. However, he said all the details about the service will be available online at the company's website soon. The committee does not play any role in negotiations with foreign countries. This is the responsibility of the Ministry of Labor, he clarified. A Labor Ministry's source told the newspaper that the ministry's negotiations with 20 countries have not gone well and there was disagreement over work hours and vacation for domestic helpers. Last month, the Ministry of Labor announced new rules to protect the rights of domestic workers, but stressed they must “respect” Islam and “obey” their employers. Labor Minister Adel Fakieh said the new rules require employers to pay workers the agreed monthly salary without delay, and give them a day off each week. Employers are also required to provide domestic workers with suitable accommodations, as well as granting them time to rest for at least nine hours each day. Under the new guidelines, workers are entitled to paid sick leave and a one-month paid vacation after putting in two years of work as well as end of service compensation equal to one month's salary after four years, he said. But employees must respect Islam and its teachings... and obey the orders of the employers and their family members concerning getting the agreed work done. A domestic worker does not have the right to reject a work, or leave a job, without a valid reason. In June the Philippines said it had signed a landmark agreement with Saudi Arabia that would protect the rights of thousands of Filipina domestic helpers. In 2011 the Philippines insisted on a minimum wage of $400 a month for its domestic helpers, among other measures.
