(2) The right to work, unemployment insurance, and to form and join trade unions: Articles
(6-10)
2.1The Constitution of the Kingdom of Bahrain guarantees the right to work in Article
No. (13) which states that, “A. Work is the duty of every citizen, is required by
personal dignity and is dictated by the public good. Every citizen has the right
to work and to choose the type of work within the bounds of public order and
decency . B. The state ensures the provision of job opportunities for its
citizens and the fairness of work conditions. C. There is no forced labour
except in the cases specified by law for national exigency and for a fair
consideration, , or implementing court judgment . D. The law regulates the
relationship between employees and employers on economic bases while
observing social justice.”, a right related to goal No. (8) of the Sustainable
Development Goals 2030, which is concerned with “promoting sustained,
inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment,
and decent work for all.”
2.2 The private sector Labor Law No. (36) of 2012 regulates worker-employer
relationship, explaining the rights and obligations of each vis-à-vis the other in a
manner that ensures the worker enjoys the rights, privileges and appropriate legal
measures. The fourth chapter of the Law sets the minimum limit for joining work and
the conditions that must be met before and after the employment of the juvenile,
while the fifth chapter clarifies the conditions that must be met when employing
women, in proportion to the exceptional circumstances of women, such as childbirth
and child care.
2.3 The above Law stipulates in Article (2 bis) that: “It is prohibited to discriminate
between workers subject to the provisions of this law on the grounds of
gender, origin, language, religion or creed,” and was followed recently by the
issuance of Decree-Law No. (16) for the year 2021 amending some provisions of
the labor law referred to above, which include the addition of an explicit text that
states: “It is prohibited to discriminate in wages between male and female
workers in work of equal value,” which will have a significant impact on removing
every form of stereotyped discrimination, and ensuring it to protect the rights of
women working in various productive sectors.
2.4 By reviewing the provisions of the private sector labor law, it was noted that the
working woman was granted the right to care for her child at a rate of two hours per
day until he/she reaches six months of age, and a total of one hour per day until
he/she becomes one-year-old, while the woman working in the public sector enjoyed
the right to care for her child for an average of two hours a day until he/she is two
years old.
Parallel Report of the National Institution for Human Rights in the Kingdom of Bahrain submitted to the Committee on
Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (CESCR)@2021
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