Job Discussion Forums

[wilberforce]

Where will this be sold, I wonder.


NHRC releases booklet on expatriates� rights, duties
The national human rights commission (NHRC) has published a booklet containing the rights and duties of those who wish to take up employment in Qatar, according to a report published in a local Arabic daily.
The booklet contains information on rules and regulations on employment in Qatar and it also answers frequently asked questions (FAQs).
Expatriates at all levels can find answers to their problems and queries in the booklet.
Divided into 6 chapters the first chapter highlights the issues which a labourer should pay special attention to before agreeing to leave his country for employment in Qatar. It warns about the visa rackets and false promises.
It states that any person should before leaving his country for employment in Qatar ensure that the employment agency handling his papers is an agency certified by the ministry of labour in Qatar.
The other four chapters contain essential clauses of labour law and formalities to be completed by the expatriate after landing in Qatar.
The last chapter contains phone numbers of concerned government departments in Qatar and foreign embassies in Doha.
In his foreword to the booklet NHRC�s chairman Dr Ali bin Simmeikh al-Merri addresses expatriates and says: �This is a booklet that has been brought out for your benefit. We in the NHRC firmly believe in safeguarding your rights and obligations. It is only by doing so that the society of which you are a part can achieve progress and development.�

http://www.gulf-times.com/site/topics/article.asp?cu_no=2&item_no=288562&version=1&template_id=36&parent_id=16

[NASA]

The whole NOC system is unfair. You really have no rights with such as system as you are not free to move to another job if your job is unbearable. Rights are few and far between.

[anaxiforminges]

I thought things were getting better.

[stickleback]

The NOC is a thorn in many people's sides. My former boss has a personal blacklist of places he will not give teachers a NOC for. This is part of his control obsession. The personal takes over logic and professionalism. The university, on the other hand, has no blacklist but they accept the head of department's decision. This is wrong. People should be allowed to live their lives. The academic world is full of teachers, lecturers, professors and researchers who move from place to place, instituiton to institution. Why block someone from going to another institution just because you have a grudge against the place? It becomes a grudge against the applicant. The NOC system needs to be revised but that is very unlikely as it gives employers power they don't want to lose.

[veiledsentiments]

But stickleback... you got an NOC, didn't you? You are still working in Qatar.

This NOC problem is endemic in the Gulf and because it only affects expats, not locals, the local enforcement systems - such as they are - don't really care.

VS

[wilberforce]

The NOC is a big problem. Gulagers are wondering what's going to happen if Imtiaz/Griffith don't get renewed as contractors. Will we be given an NOC to work somewhere else? So far there has been no problem granting the NOC to people who've found other jobs but this will be a massive exodus if the new contractors don't keep staff on. What will happen? We're all hoping we'll be kept on with the new contractors but Imtiaz is doing alright. The devil you know is better than the one you don't, as they say.

Obliging people to get the NOC is not a sign of moving forward. It's repressive and shows how restricted things really are.

[grab-bag]

--

[veiledsentiments]

No one is being picked on... it is all these socks trying to create personas as they post from Qatar... you know what I mean, right?

VS

[Rawdata]

The issue of the NOC and how it makes it difficult for expats from seeking gainful employment within a given GCC country has been raised countless times by representatives of several countries and international organizations, all to no avail. I'm inclined to think that the embassies of Philippines and India have discussed this with more frequency and intensity than the reps of most western countries.

NASA mentioned "fair": Its not about being fair between patron and client. I liken the situation to two people playing cards with the deck split between them: One guy has all the face cards + the tens, nines etc., the other has the bottom part. You can say it's fair in the sense that each guy has 26 cards but...

BTW at this game, you never get to be the dealer. It's only meant to be fair among employers. It's a mechanism to prevent disputes, even more bureaucratic bottlenecks and inertia than already exists.

Some employers will give you an NOC but that's only the first hurdle, others include (but are not limited to) the Ministries of Immigration, Interior, new regulations that may have been put in place since when you first arrived in the country (but were not subjected to in the past since you were already there). Also, your status may have changed since the time you first arrived and that makes you subject to older regulations that you were not subject to before-- think age limits, family status. You may also be at the mercy of certain individuals who worked with you and have wasta with the people in HR or Admin where you plan to move to. I've seen contracts being pulled out from under people's feet in ways that continue to amaze me. I know there are more potential scenarios that can go wrong but these are what come to mind at the moment.

My point is, if you got a job offer AND an NOC, you should keep in mind that the point of light you are seeing at the end of the tunnel may not be exactly what you want it to be.

RD

[stickleback]

How long do you have to stay out before you can come back in?

[millie18]

I think it's 2 years. But maybe longer (certainly not shorter)

Latest info on socializing in Doha - they now take your ID (or passport) at the door to ALL bars/clubs serving booze and make a note of it (or photocopy it).

The Golf Club has a sign up that as of Jun24 they cannot serve any alcohol before 5pm

There is some question as to whether the latter applies to bubbly brunches as it seems to have been implemented just this week.

Not sure as to the reasons behind these steps - rumours abound of course. Hopefully it won't lead to the KSA restrictions, if so, they'll have to start paying people a lot more money to stay here (that's why Saudi is so lucrative )

[paperback]

http://www.gulf-times.com/site/topics/article.asp?cu_no=2&item_no=375980&version=1&template_id=36&parent_id=16

[lollaerd]

Time to do away with sponsorship and NOC and give employees freedom of movement.

[WantToKnow]

quite limited indeed in SO many ways.

[paperback]