Labor minister pledges to protect domestic workforce from foreign competition

Holders of liberal occupations and construction workers in Baalbaq, staged a sit-in last Friday in Ras Al Ain to protest the competition of foreign labor force. Participants expressed their dissatisfaction over the relinquishment of their cause by the Lebanese State and associations or unions involved with their protection. During the protest, Ras el Ain municipal board member, Antoine Aluf, drew attention to unlawful competition by Syrian workers, urging the municipality and the Lebanese State to act responsibly. Similarly, the town’s mayor Mohammad Awada appealed to concerned authorities to respond immediately, warning that the peaceful move today will be followed by other moves until injustice is lifted. Meanwhile, the new labor minister, Mohammad Kabbara, received on Thursday a delegation of the National Federation of Trade Unions of Workers and Employees led by Castro Abdallah, to discuss matters of concern to workers. Abdallah called for taking necessary measures to stop arbitrary dismissal of Lebanese workers and their replacement with non-Lebanese nationals under the penalty of shutting down the violating businesses. For his part, Kabbara disclosed that he will be developing a new action plan aiming to re-activate the role of the state-run National Employment Office in protecting domestic labor force. (An Nahar, Al Diyar, Al Mustaqbal, January 6 and 8, 2017)