Bahrain approves amendments to pension board
Manama, March 18, 2014
Urgent amendments to the Pension Fund Authority's board set up were approved by the Shura Council in Bahrain.
The General Federation of Bahrain Trade Unions (GFBTU) will no longer be the only unionist body on the Pension Fund Authority board, said a report in the Gulf Daily News (GDN), our sister publication.
The amendment stated that the GFBTU, once Bahrain's only umbrella organisation encompassing all labour unions, should be replaced by other workers' representatives.
The amendment, drafted by the government based on a parliamentary proposal, is designed to allow representation from the Bahrain Free Labour Union Federation, which was formed in 2011, and other such bodies formed in future.
A similar amendment has already been made to the private sector labour law.
The bill will now go back to parliament after councillors yesterday inserted an amendment that would see board members continue unless replacements are assigned.
The GFBTU caused controversy in 2011 when it called for national strikes designed to cripple the economy, coinciding with anti-government protests. - TradeArabia News Service
