MPs have unanimously approved a 21-recommendation plan to modernise Bahrain’s employment framework, close the gap between vacancies and actual placements and transform the system into a proactive, data-driven model.
The proposals were drafted by Parliament’s Labour Affairs Investigation Committee, chaired by MP Jalila Al Sayed, following months of scrutiny into how the Labour Ministry and the National Employment Platform manage job matching, grievances and labour market data. They have now been referred to the Cabinet for review.
Labour and Legal Affairs Minister Yousif Khalaf told MPs the government would take all recommendations seriously and work to address them within the existing legal and administrative framework.
Ms Al Sayed said the objective was to shift the labour system from a “reactive” approach into an analytical and transparent structure powered by digital tools, including artificial intelligence.
At the core of the plan is a requirement for the ministry to conduct a comprehensive study into the structural causes behind more than 59,000 unfilled vacancies recorded between 2023 and 2025, and to propose practical solutions to prevent recurring backlogs.
MPs also called for a proactive monitoring mechanism to track vacancies and ensure they are utilised immediately, alongside the creation of an annual statistical indicator measuring actual employment rates and the publication of a national employment report.
A major pillar of the recommendations focuses on upgrading the National Employment Platform through AI integration at all stages to improve matching accuracy, redesigning its search engine based on international best practice and developing an improved electronic algorithm linking academic qualifications to job requirements – particularly for first-time jobseekers.
MPs have also demanded the real-time publication of detailed statistics on unemployment benefits, suspensions, reinstatements, forfeitures and appeals, as well as regular publication of comprehensive employment and compensation data.
The committee also recommended establishing a ‘job turnover index’ to measure workforce stability in the private sector, tracking reasons for resignation and dismissal to better understand labour market behaviour.
Governance of grievances was another key focus. The plan calls for the formation of administrative grievance committees and introduction of a mandatory warning system after the first refusal of suitable job offers.
Special attention was given to persons with disabilities. Recommendations include strengthening enforcement of employment quotas in firms with 50 or more employees, creating a dedicated employment pathway within the National Employment Platform and introducing tracking mechanisms to ensure sustained placement.
The proposals also call for full electronic integration between the Labour Ministry and the Social Insurance Organisation to enable real-time data exchange, and for expanded public awareness campaigns informing jobseekers of their rights and obligations.
A benchmark was also proposed, setting a minimum occupancy rate of 70 per cent of available vacancies as a measure of employment system effectiveness.
“This is about turning data into decisions,” Ms Al Sayed said. “We want a system that anticipates problems, not one that reacts to them after backlogs and complaints build up.”
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