Kuwait is relatively a small country with an approximate population of 3 million people. Even if article 29 of the constitution clearly stipulates that all the people are equal in public rights, human dignity, rights, freedoms and responsibilities within the law regardless of their race, ethnicity, religion, age, condition and gender, lots of discriminative practices have persisted across the sectors of this diverse society.
However, there has been a great public out cry regarding the employment and promotion opportunities in this country. The Kuwaitis are not given equal treatment in employment. For instance, unlike men, the women are not allowed to work in all the professions. They are barred from working in the more lucrative areas like military and the judiciary. Instead, they are only confined within the traditional women careers like nursing and teaching (Ahmed, A., 2010).
Besides, they are not entitled to equal opportunities in enjoying over time services that may make them increase their income. Hence, in most cases, they are not allowed to work at night since this privilege is only reserved for the male folk. Similarly, they don’t enjoy equal chances of promotions despite the level of their qualification and experience. For instance, they can not rise to the level of judges. This is so discriminatory.
In addition, Kuwaitis are also employed based on their religion. Being a muslin dominated state makes it possible for some of the employers to base their recruitments on religion. Therefore, some conservative institutions only hire devoted Muslims who readily accept to comply with their policies like observing dressing codes. In such organizations, only Muslims can be promoted to the senior management posts.
Lastly, the Kuwaitis are also discriminated based on their age and physical conditions. Even if it is against the law, many employers are still reluctant to recruit the physically impaired individuals in their organizations. They rarely get chances in the blue chip companies because they can only be hired as the last resort. On the same note, many fresh graduates fail to get jobs because of the employers’ tendency of preferring more experience potentials.
Works cited
Ahmed, A. (2010). Sorrow and Joy among Muslim Women. Cambridge: Cambridge University
Press.
