Authority adjusts Kuwaitis' hiring percentage for secretary and executive jobs in private sector

KUWAIT: Newspapers are now only required to make sure that 15 percent of management are Kuwaitis after a new decision cut the mandatory percentage by half. On the other hand, the hiring percentage of Kuwaitis as managers was increased for most business sectors in the private sector, according to the new rule which Al-Qabas daily published recently.

The Public Authority for Manpower (PAM) released a decision recently adjusting percentages of Kuwaiti manpower in private sector establishments based on the economic activity and main profession, particularly the secretary job item, which was merged with the executive job description, making this item relatively the highest compared to other five categories.

The decision divided percentages of Kuwaiti labor in the private sector into five main categories distributed over 30 types of economic and professional activities. There was a notable increase in the percentages where the private sector is committed to hire Kuwaitis as 'managers', as the percentage was raised to vary between 20 percent and 60 percent based on the sector.

According to the changes, hotel and tourism sectors are now committed to appoint Kuwaitis in 20 percent of jobs as secretaries and executives; both seeing an eight percent increase in the required hiring percentage of Kuwaitis. The manager jobs in the warehousing sector increased to 40 percent from 35 percent, while it was increased by three percent in the lighting and electricity sector - from 21 percent to 24 percent.

Appointment of managers in commerce and restaurants rose by four percent, and remained at 50 percent at cooperatives. Including Kuwaitis in scientific jobs and as technicians in various sectors rose varying from four to 15 percent, six to 20 percent for salespersons and from two to 20 percent for service providers.

In comparison between the latest adjustment of percentages as approved by the Cabinet in January, with what was being applied in previous years, it is found that the highest percentage is in the insurance sector, which increased by six percent to reach 70 percent as per the latest schedule, followed by banks at five percent. There is no change in Kuwaitization in five sectors - financing and investment, farming, fishing and grazing, real estate, petrochemicals and refining.

Kuwait Central Bank topped the list by providing the highest number of jobs and appointments to national labor with 422 jobs, followed by the Public Institution for Social Security with 285, Kuwait Petroleum, Corporation with 269 jobs, Kuwait Public Transportation Company with 251 and Livestock Transport and Trade Company with 232 jobs. PAM hired 75 Kuwaitis including 32 university graduates, 32 diploma holders and 11 with general secondary certificates, while cooperatives provided 32 percent of opportunities.