Baghdad and Erbil, Iraq: The Iraqi Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs (MOLSA) and the International Centre for Migration Policy Development (ICMPD) have conducted a series of orientation workshops with migrant workers and private hiring offices in Baghdad and Erbil.
Two post-arrival orientation sessions for migrant workers employed by Erbil Steel Company and Erbil Rotana were conducted to inform them of the latest rules and regulations in Iraq regarding employment, and rights, duties and responsibilities of both the employer and employed migrant workers in line with their service contracts. Support networks, legal remedies and financial literacy guidelines were also provided to them. The majority of the participants were migrant workers from India, Turkey, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Pakistan and Indonesia. The programmes and services of the Migrant Resource Centre (MRC) in Baghdad and various information materials were also shared with them.
Two workshops were also conducted for 33 and 21 licensed private hiring offices in Baghdad and Erbil, respectively. The workshops emphasised the role and duties of recruitment agencies in promoting safe and regular migration; in ensuring the legal compliance of employment contracts; and in addressing the violation of rights and other forms of exploitation against foreign workers.
A series of post-arrival orientation sessions are scheduled by MOLSA and ICMPD for different categories of migrant workers across Iraq. A session for housekeepers and domestic workers in Baghdad is scheduled for April while a session for migrant workers employed by oil companies in Basra and neighbouring provinces will be held in May. These sessions are also aimed at checking the conditions of migrant workers in light of the COVID-19 pandemic.
These activities are implemented under the MIGRAP Initiative of the project Improving Migration Management in Silk Routes funded by the European Union and implemented by ICMDP.
