Kuwait's parliament has approved in principle a new labour law that stipulates more rights for labourers working in the private sector including better annual leave, end of service indemnities and holidays, said a news report.

The bill, which had been under revision in parliament for more than a decade, also sets tougher penalties, including jail terms, for businessmen who trade in visas and recruit expatriate workers and then fail to provide them with jobs.

Also those who fail to pay salaries regularly will face penalty under the new law, it said. The bill requires the government to introduce a minimum wage for certain jobs, especially in the lower-paid categories, according to an AFP report.

Of the 44 members present in the Parliament, 43 voted for the bill while one abstained. If approved in the second and final reading after two weeks, the bill will replace a 45-year-old law that was criticised as being favourable to employers, the report added.

Kuwait is home to 2.35 million foreigners, more than two-thirds of them Asians, and over one million native citizens.