Recruitment of maids from Ethiopia, Nepal on the rise Recruitment of maids from Ethiopia, Nepal on the rise

By MD HUMAIDAN | ARAB NEWS

Published: Jan 4, 2011 22:42 Updated: Jan 4, 2011 22:42

JEDDAH: With a growing demand for house helps in the Kingdom and scarcity of manpower from Indonesia, the tendency now is to recruit housemaids from countries such as Ethiopia and Nepal, said Yahya Hassan Al-Maqbool, chairman of the Committee of Recruitment Offices at the Jeddah Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

Al-Maqbool said work visas from these two countries are on the rise, especially in Riyadh and the Eastern Province. “We have many recruitment visas for Indonesia but the scarcity of manpower there has greatly reduced recruitment from this Southeast Asian country,” he said.

He expected differences with Indonesia concerning housemaids would be settled by the end of the month, saying talks continue with Indonesian representatives.

Al-Maqbool said the recruitment of housemaids from Ethiopia, which started recently, is on a steady rise.

He revealed that a number of local regulations for housemaids will be announced next week and said they would include a lot of facilities for both the employer and the employee.

Many recruitment offices, meanwhile, are calling for a reduction in the housemaid recruitment fee, which is currently SR2,000. Any Saudi who earns SR3,500 a month is eligible to hire a housemaid.

The charges will be discussed by the Shoura Council in its weekly session on Sunday. Labor Minister Adel Fakieh has been invited by Shoura Council President Abdullah Al-Asheikh to attend the session along with other officials from his ministry