"Bahrain to support "Labour Registration Program" workers filing civil lawsuits online,"

Bahrain's Labour Market Regulatory Authority (LMRA) has recently announced that its Protection and Grievances Centre will now provide administrative support in filing civil lawsuits for migrants registered with the new “Labour Registration Programme”, following a joint initiative with the Ministry of Justice, Islamic Affairs, and Endowments.

The “Labour Registration Program” was introduced on 4 December, 2022, replacing the Flexi-Permit scheme as part of wider labour reforms in the country. Under this programme, workers on irregular status and former Flexi-Permit holders can, for a fee, apply for a self-sponsored “vocational work permit” through private labour registration centres and work in designated professions without a sponsor...

According to the LMRA, the administrative assistance to vocational work permit holders will include processing civil lawsuits at the request of workers, incorporating new requests such as updates to personal information and contact details, submitting relevant documents, and printing statements, decisions, rationale, judgments, or any other relevant documents related to the case. Additionally, the LMRA will offer the services of qualified translators proficient in the various languages spoken by the workers and a list of registered lawyers to hire and seek legal advice in disputes related to these cases...

The case of Abdulla H Al Derazi & Sons Co WLL illustrates the challenges workers face in accessing justice. Despite receiving favourable judgments in court, the workers are yet to receive their dues from the company. Furthermore, according to the Al Derazi workers MR spoke to, the labour court dismissed the cases of Flexi-Permit workers employed by Al Derazi company, citing their status as non-employees...