‘THANK YOU OMAN’ SAY STRANDED WORKERS

The Ministry of Manpower has stepped in to help 800 workers stranded in Sohar who complained of not being paid, poor living conditions and lack of food

MUSCAT: Hundreds of stranded workers who claim they have not been paid since April have thanked the Ministry of Manpower after it stepped in to help.

Workers who said they had eaten nothing but basic white rice for weeks and feared being thrown out of lodgings are now being interviewed for alternative jobs or being sent home - thanks to the ministry and the Indian Embassy.

Oman’s Ministry of Manpower stepped in to help 800 stranded workers in Sohar after we revealed their plight last week.

The workers complained to the ministry and their embassy about living conditions and a lack of basic food. In a statement to

following our report, a ministry spokesman said they were working to resolve the case.

“The Ministry of Manpower would like to ensure that it is following the situation of non-Omani manpower at the company and the ministry has communicated with all concerned parties and work is underway on a settlement to the issue, in coordination with their embassies in the Sultanate.

“It has been agreed that the concerned workers may depart the Sultanate and the Ministry is prepared to avail their travel requirements and follow up the complaint with their legal representatives.

“It is noteworthy that the Omani labour law stipulates in its 2nd part “regulation of foreign workers” that every employer, who employs 50 workers or more, has to place in a prominent place at the worksite a system for appeal and grievances, endorsed by the concerned department, and this system must stipulate that the worker has the right of submitting his (her) complaint, or grievance to the employer, or his representatives.