HRW, Amnesty International Say Lebanon Dealt Sharp Blow to Migrant Domestic Worker Rights

Amnesty International published the following article: Lebanon’s State Shura Council, the country’s top administrative court, delivered a sharp blow to migrant domestic worker rights by suspending the implementation of a new standard unified contract, Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch said today.

The Syndicate of the Owners of Recruitment Agencies submitted a complaint to the Shura Council on September 21 requesting the council to block and annul the labor minister’s two decisions to adopt the new standard unified contract for migrant domestic workers and to cap the permissible deductions an employer can make from a domestic worker’s salary -- equivalent to the national minimum wage -- at 30 percent.

The Shura Council on October 14 ruled in favor of the recruitment agencies on the grounds that these decisions comprised "severe damage" to the agencies’ interests. The Council made no reference to the rights of migrant domestic workers, which Lebanon is obliged to protect under international law.

English | October 30, 2020

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