The Labor Market Regulatory Authority opens offices to facilitate procedures for labor cases
22-12-2019
His Excellency the Minister of Labour and Social Development and Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Labour Market Regulatory Authority, Mr Jameel bin Mohammed Ali Humaidan, affirmed the Authority’s ongoing development efforts and the Executive Management’s constant commitment to facilitating procedures and services provided to citizens, residents, and business owners. Chairing the Board meeting at the Authority’s headquarters in Sanabis, and in the presence of the Board and the Chief Executive Officer, His Excellency commended the level of coordination and cooperation between the Authority and government agencies, particularly the Ministry of Justice, Islamic Affairs and Waqf, notably in relation to debt recovery and the provision of information and data concerning disputing parties who resort to labour lawsuits in the courts. The Board reviewed the memorandum submitted by the Chairman of the Audit Committee, which included the Authority’s quarterly financial reports and semi‑annual financial statements. The Board commended the success achieved in increasing recovery rates of debts owed to the Authority, and noted the cooperation of business owners in this regard. The Chief Executive Officer presented a detailed report on the Authority’s activities, programmes, and future projects, highlighting key national projects underway and those planned for the coming period. He briefed the Board on cooperation with the Ministry of Justice, Islamic Affairs and Waqf regarding the opening of offices for the Labour Courts Department in the Authority’s branches in North Sehla and Riffa Al‑Buhair. Through this new department, the Authority will prepare the labour case file to be referred to the judicial authorities on behalf of workers where no agreement is reached during the amicable settlement process before the Ministry of Labour and Social Development. This step will expedite adjudication of labour cases and reduce pressure on the courts. The Chief Executive Officer also outlined the Authority’s policy of delivering services through branches across all governorates. Average customer waiting times have been reduced from 50 minutes, when services were provided solely through the main branch, to approximately eight minutes across the network. The Authority receives approximately 650,000 visitors annually, served through six branches: the main building, the Mina Salman branch, which provides services to transaction-clearance offices; the Sitra Industrial Area branch; the Seef Mall branch in Muharraq; and the new branch in the Riffa Al-Buhair area. Services are also provided at Bahrain International Airport. The Chairman and Board members expressed their support and appreciation for the Executive Management’s efforts to enhance the quality and delivery of services to all beneficiaries, and for its cooperation with relevant government agencies within the principle of integration among government entities.