Lawyer
Hello, I would like to ask the following question....
Hello, I would like to ask the following question. Below I am briefly describing the reason of a visit and my current life/ work situation.I am currently 21 week pregnant and I ma working as an assistant professor in one of the private universities in Kuwait. The birth delivery of the baby is expected to be on 2nd of January 2020. Unfortunately, as I have learned from the latest email from the Polish Embassy, the tourist visa on which my husband currently stays in Kuwait expires on 31st of August 2020 which will force me to leave the country with him.According to the Polish Embassy there is no possibility to extend the visa at the moment, hence, his further stay will be considered illegal and penalised; it can be financial penalty and/or temporary ban on entry to Kuwait or all GCC countries. Local authorities decide on the penalties applied. On the other hand, there is also no possibly for him to receive a visa on arrival. The institution responsible for residence issues - the local Ministry of the Interior does not issue visas at the moment until further notice. Sadly, as his wife I am also not allowed to sponsor his residence. In addition, applying by him for a working visa is also not possible. Working visa application process requires him to first leave the country, apply form abroad, go through the application process (which also takes time). Moreover, according to my latest knowledge this process is also not possible at the moment according to the latest updates in Kuwait’s law. As explained previously, we have been trying to extend his visa, at least until the 31st of September. We have visited many local institutions responsible for such cases, like MOI and many branches of immigration department. However, every time we have been informed that the decision of the government does not allow any exceptions. Finally, despite all of this, we have managed to present our situation in a form of the letter of request to the under secretary of the minister in MOI. At the moment his potentially positive decision could allow us to extend his stay for at least a little bit longer. On the other hand, if our request will be rejected my husband would have to leave the country before the 31st of August. This in its turn tremendously complicates my own stay and my working conditions in Kuwait. According to my latest knowledge the father is required to register the birth of the baby and take care of the legal documents after her/ his birth. Moreover, staying pregnant in Kuwait alone, endanger not only my own health, but also the health of our baby. No one can guarantee zero pregnancy’s complications during the remaining time before the delivery. Also, as I progress with the pregnancy I am more depended on my husband in assisting me in everyday activities.As I do not want to resign from work. I would love to work online and not suspend my working activities, however, as I was informed, due to the current university’s polices, this solution is unfortunately not available. While spoken with HR I was notified that applying for an unpaid leave or the annual at this moment (while I am still in Kuwait) has almost no chances of approval (either before 31st of August, or 31st of September). HR also mentioned that without a positive decision from them leaving the country equals not resuming by me to work on time and terminating my contract. In such case I will owe to the university a three months salary because the party that terminates the contract must compensate the other. While, I fully understand that while I am not fulfilling my work obligations I am not being paid, I cannot agree to put me in a position when I am forced to leave the country, cannot amend to my working responsibilities and being hold accountable for the results of such actions.I believe that it is in the best interest of the University to accommodate an employee who has found herself in a difficult position due to external reasons and not hinder her working activities. The question is if the University has a right to not accepted my request for an unpaid or annual leave. Moreover do they have a right to terminate my contract while I am pregnant? Is the contract suspension not possible? What are my right in such situation. What can I expect from the University. Regards, Dr. Magda
إطرح سؤالك
إجابة الخبير: Waleed Al-Helo
Waleed Al-Helo
Lawyer
الأسئلة المجابة 108892 | نسبة الرضا 98.1%
We would like to inform you that referring to the Kuwaiti Labor Law, as it is the law that regulates the situations, you are entitled to request maternity leave according to the law:
Article (24)
The pregnant working woman shall be entitled to paid leave, which shall not be calculated from her other leave for a period of 70 days for the birth, provided that she gets birth there.
After the expiry of maternity leave, the employer may grant the working woman upon her request unpaid leave of up to 4 months for childcare.
The employer shall not terminate the service of the worker during her enjoyment of such leave or her absence from work due to a disease confirmed by a medical certificate as a result of pregnancy or getting birth.
Article 25t:
The working woman shall be allowed a two-hour break during her working hours in order to feed her baby according to such conditions as shall be set forth in the Ministry’s decision. The employer shall establish a nursery for children below the age of 4 at the place of work in the event where the number of female workers exceeds 50 or the number of workers exceeds 200.
Article 26:
A working woman is entitled to the same wage as a man if she does the same work.
** Therefore, if the university does not agree to give you leave is against the law
It is also not permissible to legally terminate work during the period of pregnancy, otherwise the termination of work is considered an arbitrary dismissal that requiring the employer to pay compensation to you
Therefore, if the university violates the law, you may file complaint at the Office of the Manpower Authority and claim all the legal labor rights according to the law
الرد من العميل
Dear Mr. Walled thank you for your reply. I just have few more questions. The issue is that the University claims that the 70 days of the maternity leave can be given after giving birth, or 30 days can be granted before and 40 days after giving birth. Does this mean that I cannot request to have a maternity leave let's say while I am 21 week pregnant? Do they have a right to not grant it to me right now? Another issue is the contract termination. As far I understood my contract cannot be terminated while I am on a maternity leave. But what if I am not on a maternity leave, but pregnant. Can they terminate my contract? Best regards,
إجابة الخبير: Waleed Al-Helo
Waleed Al-Helo
Lawyer
الأسئلة المجابة 108892 | نسبة الرضا 98.1%
Madam, as the matter has been clarified, the matter is regulated by law, and therefore the maternity leave is explained in the legal text, and therefore it must be granted to you, and not granting is considered a violation of the law.