Saudi sets new rules for maids

RIYADH – Saudi Arabia announced on Tuesday new rules to protect the rights of foreign domestic workers, most of whom are from South Asia, but stressed they must “respect” Islam and “obey” their employers.

Labor Minister Adel Faqih said the new rules require employers to pay workers “the agreed monthly salary without delay, and give them a day off each week,” in remarks carried by the official SPA news agency.

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,” Faqih said.

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 salary after four years, he said.

But Faqih also insisted that 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 work, or leave a job, without a valid reason,” he added.

Around eight million foreign workers are employed in the oil-rich kingdom, most of them coming from South Asia and earning low wages. The number of domestic workers is not available.

In June, the Philippines and Saudi Arabia signed a landmark agreement to protect thousands of Filipina maids from exploitation.

The agreement followed a row that erupted in 2011 when the Philippines insisted on a minimum wage of $400 a month for its maids, among other measures.

More Filipino maids would be deployed to Saudi Arabia despite the campaign to limit the number of foreign workers in the kingdom.