AN agreement has been reached on partial settlements of long-pending dues to workers at a construction company in Bahrain.
More than 150 employees working with Fundament, who had claimed non-payment of wages for almost six months, are expected to receive 35 per cent of their pending salaries latest by July 13.
The remaining amount will be deposited in their bank accounts through their respective embassies as most of the men – from India, Bangladesh and Pakistan – are leaving the kingdom soon.
The deal was reached between the employer, the respective embassies and employees under the guidance of the Labour and Social Development Ministry on Sunday.
“Labour officials met representatives of the company, embassies of India and Pakistan and the employees,” an informed source at the ministry told the GDN yesterday.
“The financial situation is not favourable and the company expressed its inability to fully settle the dues now.
“So, an agreement was reached on full settlements to those owed below BD200 and the others to be paid 35pc of their dues.
“The remaining amount will be sent to the employees’ bank accounts, through their embassies.
“A document is being prepared by the owners of the company on these terms, a copy of which will be submitted to the ministry, the embassies and the employees.”
The workers currently in the Ma’ameer accommodation include 154 Indians, 21 Bangladeshis and four Pakistanis.
According to a diplomat from the Bangladesh Embassy who attended the meeting, almost all the employees are seeking repatriation.
“Indians have repatriation flights until July 15 so we agreed that they could be prioritised in clearing the settlements,” he said.
Flights
“All of our 21 nationals also want to go home but we have no special flights and they have to depend on the commercial flights.
“Their tickets have to be done accordingly and we have asked the company not to delay it though.
“Some people are eligible for return tickets depending on their service period and we have asked for monetary reimbursement for the ticket in those cases as they are not coming back.”
The GDN reported last week around 100 employees marched to the ministry complex in Zayed Town and subsequently to the Labour Market Regulatory Authority demanding immediate action, claiming that they were starving.
“Some of us are owed up to BD300 and the company has agreed to pay this in full, while others who are owed above BD1,000 will be paid 35pc,” said an Indian employee.
He added that 54 out of the 150 Indian employees are expected to fly home aboard an Indian government’s repatriation flight to Hyderabad, while others from Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Rajasthan states will take flights to Delhi in the coming days.
Meanwhile, the Migrant Workers Protection Society and other expat support groups are providing dry rations and other essentials to employees in the camp.
The GDN reported last week that the owner of the company, a former parliamentarian, had been given a three-day notice to settle the dues or else he was supposed to be referred to the Public Prosecution by the ministry.
The company has been in the midst of non-payment rows since 2018 when the GDN reported that almost 1,800 employees protested over claims of non-payment for at least three months.
They took to the streets outside their labour camps in Ma’ameer before they were stopped by police.
The issue compounded earlier this year following which hundreds of its workers were sent into quarantine amidst coronavirus spread in March.
The labourers – working as carpenters, masons, plumbers and in construction – earn between BD75 and BD120 monthly.
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