Over 7,000 expats held so far in Oman this year

Muscat: More than 7,000 expatriate workers were arrested this year for violating the labour law, the inspection team of the Ministry of Labour revealed.

Nasser bin Salem Al Hadrami, Assistant Director General of Inspection at the Ministry of Labour, said that the ministry is making great efforts in all labour welfare departments in Oman to make the work environment safe, stable and decent for all workers.

“From the beginning of January 2023, more than 7,000 expats were arrested in the joint inspection campaigns launched by the municipalities, the Ministry of Education and the Royal Oman Police,” he said.

He also said: “The inspection team took into consideration working hours, employment of women and juveniles, everything related to the health and safety of workers, providing awareness to employers and workers.”

Al Hadrami also clarified that the law says the inspecting team has the right to enter any workplace without prior notification and employers must provide all necessary data to them as stipulated in the Article 9 of the Labour Law. “If the work is obstructed by the employer or his representative, the employer shall be punished, according to Article 112 of the Labour Law, with a fine not exceeding OMR500 or imprisonment for a period not exceeding one month, or one of these two penalties,” he added.

The ministry carried out 12,045 checks in 2022.

The Ministry has recently intensified inspection campaigns to eliminate a negative phenomenon in the labour market.

Citing figures, Al Hadrami said that over 17,000 workers were arrested in 2022, and the number of people who fled from the workplace reached 27,954, while the number of labour complaints reached 66,469 in 2022.