Hiring of Bahrainis rose 3.4% in fourth quarter of 2022: LMRA report

TDT | Manama                                                

The Daily Tribune – www.newsofbahrain.com    

Reported by Julia Cassano

Employers in Bahrain hired more Bahraini workers in the fourth quarter of 2022 compared to the same quarter a year ago, according to the latest Labour Market indicators.

The Labour Market Regulatory Authority reported that 163,471 Bahrainis were hired in Q4 2022, a 3.4% increase, when compared to 158,029 Bahraini workers employed in Q1, 2021.

On the other hand, the number of foreign workers hired by organisations in Q4 rose 9.9% to 582,674 from 530,159 workers in the year-ago quarter. The total employment in Q4 2022 was 746,145.

Despite the increase in employment, the LMRA said it witnessed a 20.2% decline in new employment work permits issued during Q4, with 40,591 employment work permits issued out of a total of 50,137 permits.

The other permits were for investor (2,940) and dependents (6,606). In addition, there were 18,028 transfer transactions of foreign workers from their previous employer to a new employer.

BD 558 monthly wage

The report also indicated that the median monthly wages of Bahraini workers increased by 1.3% in Q4 2022, with Bahraini workers earning a median monthly wage of BD 558 in Q4, 2022, compared to BD 551 in the previous year’s Q4.

Furthermore, the median monthly wage of Bahraini workers in the private sector was BD 464, showing a 1.8% increase from the previous year, while the median wage of Bahraini workers in the public sector was BD 733, reflecting a 1.9% increase from the previous year.

The labour cost gap between Bahraini and non-Bahraini workers in construction, trade, hotels and restaurants and small- scale Manufacturing was BD 355, a BD21 increase from the year-earlier quarter.