Gendered Aspects of Labour Exploitation: Women Migrant Domestic Workers in Saudi Arabia and the Role of Bilateral Labour Agreements

This article looks into the conditions in which Bangladeshi women working as domestic workers in Saudi Arabia are vulnerable to exploitation by analysing three factors: exclusion from the general labour laws, issues with monitoring, and the reliance on employer-based sponsorships and immigration. The article is based on a qualitative doctrinal approach drawing upon Saudi legislative and regulatory provisions, international instruments, the Bangladesh-Saudi domestic worker recruitment agreement, and carefully chosen institutional reports. It shows that while domestic workers are excluded from the Saudi Labour Law, there are separate provisions in place for domestic workers set out in the Domestic Workers and Those in Similar Positions Regulation. These provisions include setting a maximum working time of 10 hours per day and a minimum of 24 consecutive hours’ rest per week. This article will also consider the definition of forced/compulsory labour in Article 2(1) of ILO Convention 29 and the elements of work done under threat of penalty and lack of free consent. It has been found that whilst there is evidence to suggest that, due to the reliance on the sponsor, factors such as restrictions, passport retention, wage deductions, and inability to leave exploitative employment can create situations where conditions of forced labour could be present, it cannot be said that all sponsorships should be considered forced labour. The article concludes by making recommendations to improve the implementation of domestic worker protections in Saudi Arabia and create more enforceable bilateral agreements that put the worker first.