March 18: A delegation led by Minister for Labor, Employment and Social Security Krishna Kumar Shrestha, took stock of the conditions and security of domestic workers in the UAE and also inquired about their services, salaries and perks with the concerned authorities of the Gulf nation.

The Nepali delegation visited the UAE’s state-run Migrant Domestic Worker Service Provider (Tad-beer Center) in Dubai and learned about the workplace status of domestic workers, the legal system, remuneration, leave, social security, risk of violence and security guarantees.

On the occasion, government officials of the UAE and managers of Tad-beer Service Center assured the visiting delegation about the security for Nepali workers in the UAE.    

They briefed Minister Shrestha about the rights and security of domestic workers.

Despite the government's ban on sending domestic helps to the Gulf countries since 1973, the flow of illegal workers has not stopped. Recently, the government made arrangements for Nepali women who have been working as domestic helps in different countries to come back to their homeland. As the risk of sending workers through illegal channels has increased more than sending workers through legal channels, voices have been raised to create a safe and legal working environment for the workers.

Minister Shrestha has been discussing with the concerned authorities about the matter of providing security guarantees to the domestic workers. This was also discussed at the Nepal-UAE Joint Committee meeting on Tuesday.