Govt jobs’ incentives continue to deter Kuwaiti jobseekers from private sector

Three grilling motions on Cabinet meeting’s agenda

KUWAIT: Incentives that public sector employees receive continue to be the main reason why Kuwaitis remain reluctant to seek jobs in the private sector, a state department said. The Public Authority for Manpower indicated that a number of measures are being taken to improve the work environment for Kuwaitis in the private sector and create more job opportunities to help resolve the problem of unemployment and encourage citizens to seek non-government jobs and careers. The authority added that unemployed citizens receive financial support for 12 months till they get the right job.

The authority explained that several campaigns have been designed to boost citizens’ awareness in this regard and provide jobseekers with enough training courses to qualify them to work for the private sector. The authority also organizes special training courses for Kuwaitis already working for the private sector and for school and university students to instill this idea in their minds and direct them to seek private sector jobs. The authority explained that it trained 5,467 private

sector employees last year.

Grilling motions Government sources said the Cabinet is going to discuss the three grilling motions filed against ministers of interior, finance and public works during its weekly meeting tomorrow. The sources added that the grilling motion filed by MP Riyadh Al-Adasani against the interior minister is based on one element - the ministry’s hospitality expenses scandal noting that the government will ask to refer the motion to the legislative committee as it deems it unconstitutional because it was the minister himself who referred the case to the public prosecution and then the criminal court.

“It is unconstitutional to file a grilling motion concerning a case being currently heard in courts,” the sources stressed, noting that the minister will likely not be grilled because the government has a parliamentary majority to vote for referring the motion to the legislative affairs committee.

On the other hand, the sources said that the government is expected to cooperate with the financial affairs committee on discussing the retirees’ issue on which MP Mohammed Hayef relies in grilling Finance Minister Nayef Al-Hajraf, arguing that the issue involves usury, which is against sharia. “After avoiding this sharia violation, the government expects the number of lawmakers expected to vote against Hajraf to decrease far below the current number of 18,” the sources said.

In addition, the government expressed its trust in Minister of Public Works Jenan Bushehri, noting that more contacts are being made with MPs from the fourth and fifth constituencies in an attempt to decrease the number of lawmakers voting for a no-confidence motion below the current number of 20.

Unlicensed company

In other news, the Ministry of Commerce and Industry announced closing down a real estate marketing company for selling real estate without completing its license procedures. “The company had applied to organize a special real estate fair but did not complete the procedures needed to get the license,” the ministry explained. Separately, Chairman of Kuwait Union of Consumer Cooperative Societies (KUCCS) Meshaal Al-Sayyar strongly condemned the implementation of the pharmaceutical law retroactively, noting that this will have negative financial impacts on various co-ops and the rights of over 850,000 shareholders. In the meantime, the Public Authority for Housing Welfare said the total number of housing units in the South Sabah Al-Ahmad City project is 10,663, located in six out of the city’s 11 residential areas. The authority added that public buildings included in the project until Aug 31, 2019 are 1,328, while the total number of rented houses in Sulaibiya and Taima is 9,696, in addition to 564 apartments.

Unlicensed real estate company closed