‘Entry of domestic workers in delivery market a threat’
Part-timers snatch 50pc requests: DCA
KUWAIT CITY, Nov 27: Around 47,000 drivers are currently employed in officially recognized delivery companies who are supposed to deal with 300,000 delivery requests daily; as the average delivery capacity of each driver ranges from 15 to 20 per day, reports Al-Qabas daily.
The owners of delivery companies told the daily that despite the high number of workers in the delivery sector, the presence of freelance or part-time workers has become a threat to them and their employees; considering that the latter handle more than 50 percent of the daily delivery requests, as many clients prefer to use certain applications due to the low operational cost.
The Delivery Companies Association (DCA) cited the entry of domestic workers in the delivery sector as one of the problems they are currently facing. The association disclosed that the sponsors of these workers collect their salaries through the selfemployment system; such that the workers earn about KD240 to KD350 per month, instead of KD120 from the original employer, while the officially recognized companies spend about KD1,300 for each worker.
The association went on to say that those who shifted to the delivery sector include teachers, carpenters, domestic workers and electricians; indicating some applications tempt them by offering a higher salary for 15 delivery requests per or more daily. They pointed out that the entry of domestic workers, government contract workers and others into the delivery sector led to a remarkable decrease in the work of officially recognized delivery workers to five to seven requests per day, instead of 20.
They called on the Ministry of Interior to strictly implement the law, particularly the deportation of expatriate workers offering delivery service as a part-timer or freelancer. They argued it is not enough to ask these workers to present a permission signed by their employers or transfer them to another sector, since viola
tions are repeated without deterrence.
In a related development, an official source from the Public Authority for Manpower hinted on a plan to implement a system to regulate the delivery sector. He said the authority is currently working on the technicalities of using a barcode for each worker to easily show relevant data; such as the types of visa and driving license, to the clients or the inspectors.
❑ ❑ ❑
‘Avoid delays in project’: Head of the Government Performance Followup Agency, Sheikh Ahmad Mishaal Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, stressed the importance of the new Kuwait International Airport project ‘New Terminal 2’ as a vital project, stressing the need to avoid delays in this project.
This came in a press statement issued by the Performance Follow-up Agency during the field visit by Sheikh Ahmad Mishaal and his accompanying delegation to the project to inspect the progress of works in it, where he was received by the Minister of Public Works and the Minister of Electricity, Water and Renewable Energy Dr. Amani Bouqammaz and a number of project engineers and representatives, implementation supervision consultant and executing contractor.
Sheikh Ahmad Mishaal discussed with Minister Bouqammaz and those in charge of the project, through a visual presentation, the latest developments in the timetable for the New Passenger Terminal 2 project, the service buildings project, the roads leading to the new Passenger Terminal 2 and parking lots.
He affirmed the readiness of the Government Performance Follow-up Agency to overcome any difficulties or obstacles faced by this project or other government projects.
The inspection tour of the head of the Government Performance Followup Agency comes within the framework of the field visits that the agency makes to inspect government projects.