The National Human Rights Committee (NHRC) has issued a booklet on local and international labour rules to make foreign workers here aware of their rights and duties. The booklet is in several languages, including English and Urdu, and is being circulated through the embassies of major manpower exporting countries as well as shopping complexes frequented by expatriate workers. The publication, the first of its kind to be released by the rights panel, mentions the various international labour and human rights conventions Qatar is signatory to, and also contains international Labor Organization (ILO) regulations which aim at protecting the rights of workers worldwide. A major highlight of the booklet is that it contains a number of guidelines for newly-arrived foreign workers, in particular, for they can easily be taken for a ride by companies flouting the labor law. The booklet, for instance, lays emphasis on the fact that it is illegal for a company not to hand a worker a copy of the job agreement it has inked with him or her. Not singing an agreement with a worker is a serious violation of local labor regulations and is a punishable offense. A worker whose employers have not signed contract with him has many ways to prove that he is employed and can file a complaint with the authorities concerned. The booklet makes it clear that a worker needs to carry out his duties sincerely and in accordance with the law of the land in order to be able to enjoy benefits as per local rules. An important set of guidelines in the said booklet is about the requirements for completing residency permit (RP) procedures and how an employment agreement can be renewed. Likewise, how end-of-service benefits are to be calculated is mentioned in the publication. It may be noted that a company is required to calculate end-of-service benefits of a worker on the basis of the last basic salary drawn by him for the entire period of his service. The conditions on which a worker can be dismissed and conditions to employ women and not employ minors, are also an important part of the publication. In order to prepare the booklet, a meeting with representatives from the embassies of major manpower exporting countries was convened in coordination with the Ministry of Labor. Important tips were sought from these representatives to write the booklet and distribute it, it is understood. http://thepeninsulaqatar.com/Display_news.asp?section=Local%5FNews&subsection=Qatar+News&month=August2009&file=Local_News2009080215139.xml

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