It was decided to go on a sit-in strike
Al Rai newspaper reported that many employees are preparing to stage a sit-in in the coming days to protest the decision to increase working hours in shifts. The assistant undersecretary of planning and development department issued a circular canceling the reduced working hours of the morning shift for women employees, reducing the grace period for joining the work and increasing the working hours of the evening shift.
The time change will mainly affect women employees
Significant changes have been introduced in the timing of women employees. The new rule is that those working in the evening shift should start work at 2 pm and continue working till 9 pm. With this, the working hours will increase to seven hours. The official working hours will be from 7 am to 2 pm every day from Sunday to Thursday. The proposal is to withdraw the earlier relaxation in the working hours of the women employees of the ministry and to continue the morning shifts till 1 pm.
The morning grace time was reduced to half an hour
The working hours of male employees remain unchanged except for the reduction of the morning grace period from one hour to half an hour. The grace period which was earlier at 8 am will now end at 7.30 am. It is reported that the new schedule has put the evening workers of Islamic studies centers and Quran memorization centers in a big crisis. Previously, the timings were arranged to start at 4 pm and end at 7:30 pm. But with the new circular of the ministry, this schedule has changed. This has been changed through a new circular issued on Tuesday.
The labor union protested
The Board of Directors of the Labor Union of the Ministry expressed dismay at the decision of the Ministry of Auqaf and Islamic Affairs to extend working hours. The board alleged that the law, which had been in force for many years, had been extended without any specific reason. In a press release, the union alleged that the Ministry of Awqaf Islamic Affairs had increased the working hours while the government had announced relaxation of working hours through the flexible fingerprint system as part of efforts to reduce congestion on Kuwait’s roads. The union also stated that this is an action against the government’s move.
The need to restore the old times
The union said it fears the negative impact the decision to increase working hours could have on the ministry’s labor system and workers’ performance. A large number of employees are women, and the new circular will cause disruptions in family life. A system that has been in place for years has been changed without any reason. The union alleged that it was only with the aim of pressurizing the employees of the ministry and that this unorthodox action by the Ministry of Auqaf comes at a time when some ministries are trying to reduce the burden on their employees by reducing their working hours. The board of directors of the union appealed to the Minister of Auqaf and Islamic Affairs, Abdul Aziz Al Majeed, to reconsider the decision and maintain the old working hours.