Introduction
The Kafala system, a temporary labor migration regime primarily used in Jordan, Lebanon, and Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries, ties migrant workers’ residency status to their employer. This system establishes a legal relationship between the worker, their sponsor, and the state, which places immense power in the hands of employers. While it was designed to address labor market needs (particularly the demand for low-cost domestic, construction, and service-sector labor), the Kafala system is considered to be a form of modern-day slavery by several human rights activists. It has drawn widespread criticism for creating an environment ripe for exploitation, particularly for migrant domestic workers (MDW), most of whom are women. Under this system, workers cannot change jobs, leave the country, or access fundamental rights without their sponsor’s consent. This power imbalance leaves workers highly vulnerable to abuse and exploitation.
Exploitation often begins before workers arrive in the host country, as private recruitment agencies (PRA) that facilitate the migration process frequently engage in unethical practices. These include charging exorbitant fees, withholding identity documents, and failing to inform workers of their rights. Once in the country, migrant workers are often subjected to poor living and working conditions, underpayment, long hours, and physical or emotional abuse. Domestic workers in particular are isolated within their employers’ homes, making them invisible to the public and excluded from the protection of labor laws. Many countries, despite international efforts to reform, continue to exclude domestic work from legal protections, categorizing these workers as “servants in the homes of individuals” rather than employees.
This article explores the disconnect between international labor standards and the realities faced by MDW under the Kafala system. It examines how the system undermines fundamental rights despite the existence of international frameworks designed to protect migrant workers. The article furthermore analyzes the impact of recent reforms intended to address these issues while highlighting the persistent role of PRA in perpetuating the exploitation of MDW. By critically assessing the effectiveness of these reforms and the persistent gaps in protections for MDW, this article argues that the Kafala system’s structural deficiencies and weak oversight make it resistant to meaningful change. Without the ratification of international labor conventions and a fundamental shift in societal perceptions of the system, comprehensive reform remains unlikely.
Exploitation Under the Kafala System: The Disconnect Between Migrant Domestic Workers’ Rights and International Labor Standards
Unlike the rights of children, women, or people with disabilities, there is no universally ratified international framework solely dedicated to protecting all rights of migrants. Instead, migrant workers’ rights are addressed through various conventions, including the UN’s International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families (ICMW), the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR), and ILO standards. While poorly ratified, the ICMW offers a comprehensive legal framework that ensures migrants’ fundamental rights such as equality in working conditions, access to education, and non-violable rights like freedom from slavery. The International Labour Organization’s (ILO) conventions further detail specific labor rights and protections for migrant workers. Despite this robust theoretical framework, effective implementation relies on state policies and actions to uphold and enforce these rights, particularly for migrants who may face barriers in navigating legal and administrative systems.
The Kafala system has been widely criticized by human rights institutions, scholars, and the international community for violating international labor standards, particularly in its impact on MDW. Despite the ILO’s recognition of MDW as especially vulnerable to labor exploitation and the adoption of the Domestic Workers Convention (C-189), which seeks to safeguard their rights, the convention remains poorly ratified, and conditions for MDW have changed little.
Under the Kafala system, migrant workers face severe restrictions on their rights and freedoms. Visas are tied to a specific employer or sector, limiting mobility and making it difficult to leave exploitative conditions. Deceptive recruitment practices, poor living and working conditions, wage withholding, and identity document confiscation are widespread. Employers and recruitment agencies often confiscate the travel documents of MDW, restricting their freedom of movement and making it difficult for them to report abuse despite prohibitions under the ILO Domestic Workers Convention (C-189) and the ICMW. These practices violate fundamental rights such as the right to decent work, freedom of movement, fair remuneration, and free choice of employment, which are enshrined in international instruments including the ILO conventions, the ICCPR, and the ICESCR.
A key factor sustaining these abuses is the exclusion of MDW from labor protections. The labor codes of many countries, including those that have adopted the Kafala system, exclude domestic workers from minimum wage protections by defining them as “servants,” leaving them vulnerable to exploitation and depriving them of fair remuneration. Additionally, MDW face severe restrictions on their ability to change jobs due to the fact that their residency is tied to their sponsor. In Lebanon, for instance, transferring sponsorship requires both a release waiver from the current employer and a pledge from the new one, with a maximum of two transfers allowed. Such restrictions trap workers in abusive conditions and expose the gap between national policies and international legal standards.
The Kafala system also shifts the responsibility of MDW from the state onto employers and PRA, which play a central role in the migration process by handling recruitment, visas, and travel arrangements. Migrants often rely on these agencies to secure employment, leaving them vulnerable to exploitation before they even arrive in the host country. Many agencies charge excessive fees, confiscate documents, withhold information about workers’ rights, and facilitate exploitative conditions like wage withholding, long hours, and poor living standards. Despite existing laws designed to protect migrants, a lack of effective supervisory mechanisms and the prioritization of immigration control over human rights allow PRA to operate with little accountability. Although the ILO’s Private Employment Agencies Convention (1997) establishes minimum standards and guiding principles for regulating recruitment agencies, its limited ratification has left many MDW unprotected, increasing their risk of abuse.
Recent Reforms to the Kafala System
In response to international pressure, some countries have introduced reforms to the Kafala system. Saudi Arabia has revised its regulations for absconding domestic workers, allowing them two months before their status becomes irregular. The country has also introduced QIWA, a digital platform for streamlining employment processes and documenting employment contracts. Kuwait and Qatar have extended minimum wage regulations to domestic workers, although Lebanon continues to exclude them. In addition, in Saudi Arabia and Qatar, workers can now transfer sponsorship without employer consent before their contracts expire. Saudi Arabia has eliminated the exit permit requirement, although sponsors are now notified and have ten days to file inquiries. In Qatar, most workers under labor laws can leave without employer consent, but domestic workers must notify their employers 72 hours in advance.
While these changes are often described as progress, most reforms largely omit domestic workers, farmers, and home guards, primarily due to their exclusion from national labor laws. Furthermore, reforms often leave significant employer control intact, such as through exit visa mechanisms. Barriers like weak justice systems, language skills, and limited technological access also hinder workers from leveraging platforms like QIWA, leaving them vulnerable to exploitation. High-profile cases including the exploitation of migrant workers in Saudi Arabia Amazon warehouses and the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar highlight ongoing abuses.
In Lebanon, reform efforts remain stalled. The 2011 draft bill and 2020 Standard Unified Contract aimed at improving protections for domestic workers but faced significant resistance. While the draft bill remains in parliament, the contract was suspended by the State Shura Council following opposition from recruitment agencies. Current efforts to introduce a new contract by the Minister of Labor favor recruitment agencies and further restrict workers’ rights, signaling a regression rather than progress. More recently, Ministerial Order No.1 of 2023 addressed certain conditions for foreign domestic workers who are not employed under their official work permits, yet it failed to provide comprehensive protections. These challenges highlight Lebanon’s continued failure to align its policies with international labor standards.
Dismantling the Kafala System: Necessary Reforms
Abolishing the Kafala system, which would reduce employer control over migrant workers, is challenging due to its deep roots in societal customs that normalize labor exploitation. Effective reform to dismantle the system requires more than legal changes; it demands shifting societal attitudes that view such abuses as customary. While recent reforms in some countries signify progress on paper, their practical impact remains limited. These changes often preserve employer dominance and exclude MDW from protection under national labor laws. The first step in dismantling the Kafala system must begin with recognizing MDW as employees rather than servants and ensuring they receive full labor law protections such as minimum wage, sick leave, and the ability to change employers freely.
The ratification of international conventions such as the ICMW, the Domestic Workers Convention (C-189), and the Private Employment Agencies Convention (No. 181) is crucial in addressing these issues. Key measures include prohibiting document confiscation, ensuring fair remuneration, and guaranteeing freedom of employment. In addition, enhanced oversight of PRA combined with well-trained labor inspectors, is essential to detecting and preventing exploitation of MDW. In this aspect, more effective and accessible complaint mechanisms should be established by governments, in addition to providing legal aid services to encourage MDW to report abuses. Furthermore, ethical recruitment throughout the migration cycle could be achieved with stronger bilateral agreements between labor-sending and receiving countries. Necessary to challenge societal norms, awareness campaigns and employer accountability measures that enable labor exploitation are needed. These reforms are critical to protect MDW and create lasting change.
Nadine El-Dekmak is a PhD Researcher in Law at the Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB) and a member researcher at the Fundamental Rights Research Centre of the VUB. Her research focuses on human trafficking and the labor exploitation of migrant workers within tied visa regimes.
Image credit: John Owens for VOA, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
