Lebanon has gone through many stages in its absorption of migrant workers, both before and after the Lebanese Civil War. This development has led to multiple problems regarding integration in Lebanese society. The ambiguity of the Kafala system in Lebanon has resulted in migrant domestic workers facing many legal issues and violations to their basic human rights. The government has largely been inactive and ineffective in implementing laws to protect migrant domestic workers but has attempted to manage the situation but to little avail.
Historical background.
Until the 20th-century, slaves worked in the private households before slavery in Lebanon was prohibited. Before the start of the Lebanese Civil War young girls, aged ten and upwards, who came from poor Lebanese families or from other countries such as Syria, Palestine and Egypt were employed in Lebanese households. The girl's parents collected their salary annually though the girls remained with their employers until they got married. Following the beginning of the Lebanese Civil War, many Arab domestic workers decided to leave due to a general economic decline and a crisis in security. That in turn left a gap in the country's domestic workforce. A change in situation came about with the arrival of African and Asian migrant workers. The first migrants arrived in the late 1970s. Initially, the highest percentage of migrant workers were male until that is the 1980s and early 1990s when an increasing feminization of the migrant labour force became evident.
The migrants, mostly from Sri Lanka and Philippine, arrived together in large groups through both illegal and semi-legal channels. The migrant labour was supported by the sending countries because of the foreign exchange remittances which helped to reduce the country's debt.
In 1998 it was estimated that there were 100,000 Sri Lankans, 30,000 Indians and 20,000 Filipinos living in Lebanon. There were also an estimated 40,000 Egyptians and 250,000 Syrians.
The sending countries have been in pursuance of effectual policies concerning overseas employment. After 1987, the Lebanese government failed to answer the requests of the sending countries to establish an inclusion of certain conditions in the employment contract. The requests were due to the failure of private recruitment agencies in following licensing procedures, in addition to reports of physical abuse.
Recruitment process.
The recruitment process of a migrant domestic worker into Lebanon is conducted by sponsorship. The worker has to receive an invitation before being granted a working permit to enter the country. The invitation comes through a recruiting agency either by use of the services of their counterparts in the worker's country of origin or directly from the agency itself and sometimes at the request of an individual employer. First, the Ministry of Labour issues preliminary work authorization to migrant domestic workers. In 2010, the Ministry of Labour issued an approximate 118,000 work permits to migrant domestic Workers. Next, the Ministry of Interior issues entry visas through the General Directorate for General Security. Then the General Directorate of General Security authorizes the legal entry of migrant domestic workers and arranges work permission and residence when they arrived in the country. Lastly, the sponsor's name is located on the migrant domestic worker's entry visa, residence and work permit. The visa is for a three-month period and the name of the sponsor is included in the passport. When the migrant domestic worker arrives at the airport they are subjected to an immigration routine which includes the handing over of their passports to the Lebanese General Security in order to process the papers, while the migrant domestic worker waits to be collected by their sponsor. After this, the sponsor brings the migrant domestic worker to a local agency for a basic medical checkup.
There are no clear criteria set by the government in terms of the requirements needed to issue an agency licence. In order to open an agency, an agent must place a $33,500 non-interest-bearing guarantee in Bank de l'Habitat which is the government's Housing Bank. There are an estimated 310 licensed agents in Lebanon. Out of this number, 44 are operating as genuine agents with office and staff while the remaining agents hold licenses, they do not focus on the obtaining and placing Migrant Domestic Workers in positions but sell their quotas to active agencies.
In order to recruit migrant domestic workers, Lebanese recruitment agencies collaborate with agencies in the migrant sending countries. Migrant domestic workers are required to pay a fee to the local agent in their home country, usually a large sum of money which causes them to incur a large debt. Once the fee transaction is complete the agency arranges the transportation. The employer is obliged to meet the migrant worker at the airport gate where a general security guard who holds the employee's passport will hand it over directly to the employer. A medical examination and the resulting report must be fulfilled before the work permit is issued and the insurance for the worker must be paid by the employer within three months. A standard unified contract is drawn up which is more in favour of the employer than the migrant worker.
Legal aspect.
Article 7 of the Lebanese Labour Law explicitly excludes domestic workers from the standard labor protections given to the other classes of employees. The domestic workers have been denied the right to freedom of association and banned from union membership under Article 92 of the Labour Law, added to which they have almost no legal safeguards which leaves them subject to abuse and exploitation. The decision made by the Lebanese forbidding the domestic workers forming their own union or being a member of one would be considered a violation of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) which Lebanon ratified in 1972 and entered into force in 1976. Article 22 of ICCPR stipulates that "Everyone shall have the right to freedom of association with others, including the right to form and join trade unions for the protection of his interests."
The Standard Unified Contract is a contract between the Employer and the migrant domestic worker. It was drawn up by The Ministry of Labour and it is the main source of the worker's rights. The right for a clean and private place in which to relax in their free time. Also, clean and appropriate clothes, and sufficient food (Article 8). The right to medical care when needed, including dental and eye care, the costs of which should be met by the employer. The workers are covered by health insurance in the case of emergency (Article 9). The right to work for ten non-consecutive hours every day with frequent short breaks, and at least eight continuous hours of rest at night (Article 11). The right for a weekly rest period of 24 hours, and deciding which day in the week is to be discussed between the worker and the employer (Article 12). The right for annual leave consists of 6 days also the dates should be discussed between the employer and the worker (Article 12). The right for a return ticket at the end of the contract (Article 13). The right for one phone call every month on the charge of the employer (Article 14). The right for sick leave when there is a medical report, half a month with pay and half a month with half pay (Article 15). There is no stipulation in the contract for any free legal assistance for the domestic workers.
In spite of the rights mentioned in an official contract, in practice the rights were ineffective. In the case of conflicts matters were often settled out of court, not only in the case of nonpayment of salary but also in the case of physical abuses. Under the Kafala system a domestic worker might be administratively detained in the event of fleeing the household of the employer. That in turn places the employer in a better position when negotiating the rights of the worker. As a result, the domestic workers often drop the charges against the employer or even refrain from filing a case before the court.
The Kafala system.
The Kafala system involves a sponsor who has the legal responsibility for a migrant domestic worker during a contract period, making the worker dependent upon the sponsor. The Kafala system is not legally binding in Lebanon because recruiters cannot act as a sponsor. Instead the system is made up of a number for administrative regulations, customary practices and legal requirements which bind the worker to the recruiter temporarily.. Once in Lebanon, the migrant domestic worker is assigned an employer. A worker may not change employer or break the terms of the contract unless the employer signs a release waiver. This must be done before a notary public and Lebanese authorities give an official release. A worker becomes illegal if they leave without the consent of their sponsor and the official release from the authorities. Human Rights Watch has said that the Kafala system in Lebanon puts workers at risk of exploitation and abuse, while Anti-Slavery International has said that the system is one of the major causes of vulnerability of migrant workers. The Kafala system means that the sponsor of the migrant domestic worker is legally responsible for the migrant and the state's responsibility for 'alien surveillance' is then passed on to the employer.
The Kafala system has a notable impact on the predominately female migrant workers who often face exploitation and abuse within private households. Female migrant workers are excluded from protections under family violence laws while the law may apply to their families, when they are considered Lebanese, it does not cover their workspace. Yet, they are also excluded from the Lebanese Labor Code leaving them with a lack of resources against abuse by their employers but also in their families. Scholars such as Maya Mikdashi highlighted these differences as crucial to understanding the role of "Sex" in Lebanon's sectarian system. According to her, these differences contribute to a better understanding of how "Sex" in a sectarian state reproduces political society across an intersectional grid including modular and multiple articulations of the categories of sexes, sects, citizens and noncitizens.
In April 2019, Amnesty International urged Lebanon government to end the Kafala system which has led to the abuse of thousands of domestic workers in the Mediterranean country.
By suspending the implementation of a new standard unified contract, Lebanon's State Shura Council caused a sharp blow to the migrant domestic worker rights. The new contract allowed workers to terminate their contract without the consent of their employer, dismantling a key abusive aspect of the kafala system.
Agencies.
Employment agencies play three roles in the process: recruiter, immigration consultant and mediator. A labour recruiter can be either public or private and offers labour recruitment services. These businesses profit from the recruitment of migrants workers from one country and their allocation in jobs in another. Agents charge fees and commission for their services to migrant domestic workers. Sri Lankan migrant domestic worker pay an estimated $1,300–1,600 to a Lebanese agent while potential workers in the Philippines and Ethiopia pay $2,400–3,500 and $1,700–2,100 respectively. The Lebanese agent will also earn $300–600 in commissions. This money covers travel costs, Lebanese government visa fees, and the agency fee. In some cases, the first three months' salary is signed away as payment. The agency fees cover the cost of airfare, government charges for issue of visas and agency commissions. The residency, work permit, notary fee and annual insurance are not included in the initial sum and are the responsibility of the employer sum which is calculated to $500. There is a difference in the amount the agency receives for each group of workers depending on their country of origin. One example is the migrant workers from the Philippines who demand higher costs and monthly salaries because they have a good command of English, both spoken and written. They are deemed better educated and therefore are given a higher respect as maids than those from other countries. Some employment agencies contract migrant domestic worker out on short-term contracts at a cost of up to $450 per month. The high prices involved in recruiting a migrant domestic worker means that employers take precautions to make sure the worker does not leave their position before their contract is up. The migrant domestic worker is also required to make a deposit of $1,000 in a Lebanese bank in order to cover