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A Warning from a Teacher

Back in June I posted about how a lot of teachers were being deported for working illegally in Kuwait because the schools wouldn’t do their visas. Well now one teacher has come out and posted a video about her experience which you can watch above. Not really sure how widespread this is but I’ve also heard a lot of gym instructors have a similar issue. [YouTube]

teacher

127 replies on “A Warning from a Teacher”

What she is saying about the private school hiring process is true and very widespread, from my experience.

However, the ministry are no angels.

For example, in order to get approval to be a teacher in a Special Needs school in Kuwait, you need to be interviewed by a panel in the “Public Authority of the Disabled”, which then needs to be approved by the Ministry of Education.

When I was hired by the school, the ministry was not conducting interviews, they kept saying a panel had not been formed. I had to use a “wasta” to FINALLY get interviewed by the Authority (a wasta to get the actual interview, not to be appoved, mind you). When I finally finished this step and got approved, the Ministry of Education refused to approve me because they said they did not recognize the authority of the “Public Authority of the Disabled”, so we needed another wasta for that process to go through. I did not get approval until 7 months into the school year.

I would like to also mention that I am a Kuwaiti citizen, so I did not have to deal with work visas, just an actual approval (you can not get a work visa until you are approved).

So just to clarify, a lot of the issues with work visas in private schools is not only the fault of schools, but the political power struggles within and between the different ministries and public institutions.

what complete and utter bullshit! How could she not know she needed to get a work permit just like anywhere else in the world? Besides, even IF she didnt know when she first came, what about the very first time they told her she had to leave after 3 months to renew her visit visa? Oh, and since 95% of the teachers at the school DO have work permits, surely someone told her that. Moreover, Its not like she was living in a fucking cave. Open any english newspaper in Kuwait and every single day you’ll find articles about people getting caught and punished because they are working illegally or have an expired work permit etc etc etc

And considering they get a big fat stamp in their passports and / or on visas that says ‘you are not permitted to work’… And their visa says VISIT.. She’s a liar.

People outside of Kuwait don’t know about or understand the fully legal slavery system that is sponsorship. In other countries, you can go on your own free will and don’t require a sponsor to get a working visa or visit visa. She just learned about it and now her employer is trying to hide her. Sure, she could’ve done more research, but does that refute the fact that a vast majority of western teachers in Kuwait are being treated exactly the same? Being brought in on visit visas and working. Please do not push blame onto the victim.

While people can’t just come to the US or the UK and work without a visa, the majority of us are clueless to that process. Especially if we’re American citizens and never required a visa.

Additionally, as recent as 2010 a number of American companies with contracts in Kuwait were flying their employees in via military air onto the Northern camps. So they didn’t even have a visit visa much less a work visa. It was (and maybe still is) a very common practice that seemed to be widely accepted. So for her not to be aware of the work visa requirement doesn’t surprise me at all.

so what you are saying is the US Military are flying people into Kuwait without ANY paperwork whatsoever???? how is that legal and surely to god that’s a huge security risk??? Basically any tom, dick or harry could be walking round kuwait never actually having had any papers at all..Maybe not even an expired visit visa???

Yes, that’s correct. They are provided ‘orders’ which list them as contractors who are authorized military air flights, flown directly onto the camp, and utilize the same flight when going on vacation or leaving their job. It’s not as common now as it was back in the mid-2000’s, but I’m sure it still takes place. We told every employee to get their international drivers license before flying which allows them to legally drive in Kuwait — bypassing the Kuwait license. All work was performed on the US Camp and by avoiding the visa it allowed (allows) the US company to ignore the Kuwait labor law.

“All work was performed on the US Camp”

Fun fact: US Military base is always considered as US territory (doesn’t matters in which country is it located)… So if US citizens were landing and depart from airport controlled by US military and they were working only inside military base, technically there is no any violation in that.

When they go ‘off base’ they are no longer in U.S. territory. If any criminal act is commited then, there is no record of them entering the country.

I am 100% positive that if this was the UAE and US contractors were blatantly breaking labor laws and exploiting workers against their host country, they would go after them. Further since they have PR teams, they would swiftly send it to the press if they were put on the State Department Human Rights 3rd Tier level for the last SEVEN years to show the world what hypocrites these Americans are working in their country who are the worst human rights violators. But they know the Kuwait government doesn’t have the guts to do this and certainly don’t have any PR teams. And Yes Xtina the US military is at fault because it is going on in their camps and they approve the contracts

You misread what I wrote. I said you don’t require a sponsor. When you go to work in the US or UK, you get a work visa with the company you’re working for, but it’s not the same as also having a sponsor on top of it like the Kuwait system. You aren’t at the mercy of the sponsor, once your work is done at the place where your work visa is with, you can leave the country, they don’t take your passport, etc.

‘People outside of Kuwait don’t know about or understand the fully legal slavery system that is sponsorship. In other countries, you can go on your own free will and don’t require a sponsor to get a working visa or visit visa.’

What absolute rubbish…….’on your own free will’…yep FOR A HOLIDAY.Please name me a few countries in the world where a non national can just walk in and start working legally without a work visa?
You are living in the clouds ( presumably no visa needed).

You misread what I wrote. I said you don’t require a sponsor. When you go to work in the US or UK, you get a work visa with the company you’re working for, but it’s not the same as also having a sponsor on top of it like the Kuwait system. You aren’t at the mercy of the sponsor, once your work is done at the place where your work visa is with, you can leave the country, they don’t take your passport, etc. A work visa in the US or UK just means you are allowed in the country as long as you’re working at the company. Contrast that to the Kuwait system where they forcefully take your passport and you an get stuck in the country without being able to leave because you’re at the mercy of a sponsor. You do not have free will in the Kuwait system, i.e. it’s modern day slavery.

There is no such law in Kuwait that allows the sponsor to hold your passport. If it happens you can report it to the nearest police station or file a court case. And you will get it back by force.

True the law says they are not allowed to hold the passport, but you know what about half or more of the companies here are holding passports so that people don’t run. My wife and I know people that only get their passport back when they leave for vacation and are forced turn them back in once they return.

The governments of other countries who give you a work permit are in essence your ‘sponsor’.
Also as another poster says, the law in kuwait doesn not permit the sponsor to take your passport except to complete legal processes. Do not blame Kuwait- blame unfair sponsors.

Its 99% easier for an expat to get a job in Kuwait than it is for an expat to get a job in the USA or Europe where its almost impossible for that to happen. The sponsorship system isnt perfect and has many faults but at least it exists and there is a mechanism for foreigners to work in Kuwait. There is no way she didnt know that she was working illegally from the very beginning

There is a way. Often when people go abroad to teach, especially Americans, they think businesses are run in the same manner as their home. In America a company doesn’t generally lie to employees because those employees can sue. When schools (not just in Kuwait) recruit people and present themselves and their hiring process as one thing Americans tend to believe them. Then, when they go there and find out it’s something different they learn the lesson of working abroad. Companies can lie in some other countries with no fear of repercussions from employees. If you don’t know about the government or legal processes of where you’re going (and the internet can only tell you so much because everything on line concerning any country’s govt. is mainly shiny and clean due to PR) then everything is a surprise when you begin to deal with your company.

It is easy to trust your company’s HR department when they say that you need to give them X, Y, Z and they will take care of your work visa. You figure that they know what they are doing and wouldn’t do anything illegal because that countries government would punish them. Not so in Kuwait. A commenter above said that it’s both the school and the government’s fault and I agree. Any business will do what they can to cut corners in order to make their businesses work and that is what happens in Kuwait. If the Ministry fined schools for illegals and schools had to obtain work visas before teachers came it would take at least six months to hire new teachers…AT LEAST…because of how slow the government is. There would be no private schools for sure. So, if things are to change it would have to be from the top down.

This woman is just shedding light on her experience and look at the conversation it started. Maybe it’s a much needed entry into a bigger conversation about how government offices can be slow and ineffective for both Kuwaitis and foreigners.

You will never know what She went through unless you were in her shoes, Hope something like this happens to you someday, pointing at the floods below your level and saying the water ain’t that deep is easy to say, as long as you are not in it! Respect people who go through hardships, by the way you commented seems like you just were frustrated at something before you commented :), get well soon buddy.

It won’t happen to those who work legally in Kuwait.
It won’t happen to those who get clean police clearances.
I don’t see any flood.
I’m not your ‘buddy’.

Lots of citizens in the UK work for minimum wage…and in the states. The work ethic in the west is very different from that in Kuwait. Many westerners would rather work for minimum wage than leave their families to work in a different country. There are also issues of education in the west that Kuwaitis don’t face. Some people would love to work abroad but are stuck because they can’t pay the high fees of schooling in the west. There are so many factors that go into people’s situations. I’d urge you to have a little empathy for others and try to see the world through someone else’s lens once in a while.

Rule Number 1 before signing job contract: Read the contract.

Rule Number 1 before traveling to work abroad: Get proper visa.

How about “when you hire someone to work in your company, complete the neccessary paperwork”?

Or “When your country requires 90% of it’s private sector workforce to be imported, you make the facilities efficient and accessible?”

Or maybe people are just trying to support the lucrative Stamps and Mandoubs industry.

Everyone reads their contracts. There is nothing in the contract concerning the various surprises one might encounter when arriving in Kuwait. Why would they write all of that in a contract? As far as getting a proper visa…it is on the company to take care of it’s workers in that respect. There are very few countries where your visa is in question when you arrive. Kuwait just happens to be one of them. This is a problem for this country to fix, not for the workers it imports. That’s like inviting someone to dinner and when they get there you ask, “Why didn’t you bring a chair and a fork?” Sarcasmo has a point. When your country imports 90% of it’s workers your country should excel at processing them legally. This one does not.

What concerns me more regarding teachers, is the actual quality of teachers coming into Kuwait. I see a lot of barely qualified teachers on a family visa (sponsored by the husband) working in schools. This way, the teachers can always ‘disappear’ during an inspection.

I also see a general trend in difficulty getting quality expat professionals into Kuwait.

Kuwait can no longer attract the very best talent and this makes me sad.

Quite frankly Kuwait should be allowing spouses on family visas to work legally in the country. This would help this industry, who are having great difficulty recruiting teachers from overseas and these visa issues to hire locally. The spouse would need to have to present a No Objection letter to the ministry to work in Kuwait, together with a series of documents, including an attested copy of her teaching credentials. All diplomas would be required to be attested in the States through the State Department, then approved through the Kuwait Embassy in the US. Although timely, this would give qualified teachers on dependent visas an opportunity to work in Kuwait on their dependent visas, and further, assist schools in hiring locally rather than overseas which is cost-effective. However, Kuwait currently does not have a law allowing spouses on dependent visas to work in the country with their spouses permission, the UAE does.

True and this even applies to wives of kuwaitis… brits/americans married to kuwaitis are legally not allowed to work either.

This country is crazy.. talk about shooting themselves in the foot. You don’t want expats, you need expat, we don’t want expats, we need expats…

two steps forward, three steps backwards..

I checked one of this lady other videos… she does not even pronounce english correctly. She said “axed” meaning “asked”. That was hilarious.

Maybe she doesn’t talk American slang while teaching, only when out in public. Drive around Kuwait and see how many signs have misspellings. Terbo Gym in Fintas is a good example. Here on the Kuwaiti base down in Julaia. Market is MARKTEKT, and that is on two signs. They spelled diesel, DEISIEL!

checked one of this lady’s other videos.

If you’re going to make fun of someone else’s language skills, it’s best to move out of your glass house first.

@Sarcasmo, Why are you so angry? and what glass house you’re talking about? I’m a high school graduate working an entry level job. She’s an ENGLISH teacher for fuck sake.

@TMI,

I have no idea what poo poo or caca you’re talking about. But as you said… if you can find it… then you must be it.

@jo , I have no idea what the hell you’re talking about. But if you think saying “axed” instead of “asked” is something acceptable from an English teacher then damn you have low standards. Or no respect to the people learning English in this counter. I bet its the second one.

“I watched one of the other videos uploaded by the lady, she mispronounced the word “asked” by saying “axed”, that was hilarious.” – not like your english is any better. XD

That’s called dialect. Many Americans, including myself, say certain words differently based on where we were born and raised. Pronouncing asked as “axed” is very natural in the states in the south and northeast. I am sure if you think hard, you can find some commonalities between my description in Arabic. Dialect is certainly not a reason to dismiss a message.

the reason kuwait can no longer attract decent qualified professionals is because kuwait tends to treat everyone like shit unless you are a kuwaiti..

kuwait nees to take a long hard look at themselves because when the resources run ouot it will be back to the caves!!

Well, she was much happier in her other 10 Kuwait videos showing off her bling bling and all the other perks of living and working in Kuwait. I guess she’s pissed now that she has been replaced even though she says she wants to leave. Traffic fine is holding up her residency? Traffic fine here or in the states? That part confuses me and yes, if they finally get around to getting employees a visa and can’t due to their personal problems then yes, they will charge the employee or let them go.

The whole walking video thing is annoying, just sit your butt down and make a video. I think there’s more to this story then what’s being told.

More worrying is the fact that she is supposed to be an educator and yet she hadn’t enough edyoukayshun to know she needed a work visa / or thinks people will believe she didn’t know she needed a work visa- don’t know which is more laughable?

Oh, because I believe you can drive legally in Kuwait on your foreign drivers license if you are under a visit visa.

The Ministry of Private Education need to do a proper check on teachers working in schools without proper qualifications and / or with FAKE qualifications – one girls’ school here for example has two British teachers in ‘high up positions’ neither of whom have real degrees- how is this even possible? How? Because of either 1) school wasta or 2) ministry not checking properly directly with the college or university to see if that person is on their graduate/ alumni list or if the college / uni even exists …or a combination of both.
It’s sick- imagine if you wejt for an operation and were treated by a surgeon with a fake degree? Or a policeman who had bought his uniform at the local dress up shop? Or a lawyer who had simply watched a few episodes of Law and Order and then downloaded himself a brand spanking shiny law degree from Mr Google.
Teachers on tourist visas aren’t the problem- quite often ( unfortunately ) it’s the ones with the fake stuff that have slipped through the ministry net that are the bigger issue.

Two British females ‘high up’ – can only be AAG or ESG – those are the only ‘female only’ schools… so.. ‘high up’, principals without qualifications. They are all over Kuwait.

totally disagree Crazy.. principal should be up to date on the latest educational methods / resources / ofsted criteria/recommendations etc etc etc….

that’s like saying the head of thoracic surgery doesn’t need any medical background…

Exactly- principals , head teachers , HODs and pastoral heads should be qualified / experienced / authentic and up to date in the latest UK/ US methodology – having previously worked in an office doesn’t qualify them for THAT office.
Maybe whoever is reading this from the ministry of private education needs to save face and go check out the credentials of all heads/ deputy heads and stop some of them taking the complete p*ss.

I know some schools they have foreigner teachers and they dont have degree in education or in teaching. They are blond and foreigners and that enough for school ! and apparently for some of the parents too !

Inkuwait,
I assume you’re a citizen based on your comments. I have a question I have asked just a few Kuwaiti friends. Do you feel the “wasta’ method of doing business is detrimental to companies…especially schools? Your comment above is dead on, but I wonder if the Ministry did find out a principal wasn’t qualified, but had wasta…what would/could they do? Kuwait is the only country I have lived in that operates through wasta and I haven’t heard of any other country honoring this. Thoughts?

I see you know absolutely NOTHING about being a Head Teacher. It is certainly NOT an admin job. Put brain in gear before opening mouth.

Lol -‘ they have a ‘ministry’ otherwise known as , we, government’.
Goodness she’s not the brightest bulb on the Xmas tree is she?
Is that Universal American Schook behind her or what?

If you desire to live and work in a foreign country, you will comply with the protocols and procedures established by that country. It’s pretty straightforward. Just because your employer opts to ignore the law does not confer amnesty upon you. You’re BOTH guilty.

You are victim blaming. You can use your same argument towards the schools, if they desire to bring in teachers from foreign countries, then they should comply with the protocols, procedures and legal requirements in the country. It’s pretty straightforward. They are putting foreign workers in imminent danger and trying to hide them so they don’t get caught. They could be thrown in jail or deported.

The problem is the Ministries, schools and legal slavery system that is sponsorship in this country. Streamline the process like they do in UAE and grant work sponsorship visas within a week before allowing them to enter the country or start working. That is the legal obligation of the schools, not the teachers. Stop victim blaming.

Both the teacher AND the school are guilty. I thought I made that clear. BTW, she is NOT a victim. She is, at best, a co-offender.

Right, so let me get this straight, you’re saying that if you’re a big name American school and you need more international teachers, but legally you cannot provide working visas to them if you were to hire them, it’s both my fault and the teacher’s fault that I can only bring them in on a visitors visa and if they work on that they can go to jail or be deported.

The legal thing to do is to be able to get foreign teachers working visas and not even bringing them into the country on visitor visas. Just because a teacher agrees to come and work on a visitors visa after they’re told by the schools that they’ll be safe and “it’s okay, everyone in the country does it” does not mean that they are to blame or they somehow share the burden. That’s victim blaming. Stop victim blaming.

It is the fault on the ministries, the schools and the modern day slavery system in Kuwait that’s known as the sponsorship system.

She’s not a victim. She knowingly and willfully violated duly enacted laws. I agree that the Ministry should do it’s job, but it’s clear to even a casual observer that education is not much of a priority in Kuwait.

“Streamline the process like they do in UAE and grant work sponsorship visas within a week before allowing them to enter the country or start working. That is the legal obligation of the schools, not the teachers.” There’s the solution right there. In addition, all diplomas must be authenticated from there country of origin before working in the UAE and then must be attested by the Foreign Affairs Dept. This would cut out fake diplomas or staff working without proper teaching credentials. They will close a school down for this in the UAE and penalize them swiftly. I think the Ministry of Labor here needs to be overhauled if this is so widespread throughout Kuwait.

Overhaul…??? I don’t think they are qualified to do the job in the first place.
Have any of your been to the shoon lately? Its a Friday marked look alike.

I would want to see their diploma and professional work experience as a start.

Whatever her private ordeals n tribulations might be, the sad truth is that, this is the scenario in the private schools in Kuwait. There is no need to pick at this woman’s diction nor at her shortcomings. Privately owned schools are being reviewed n penalized if found at fault. Saddly, those institutions that belong to very highly profile local families, will always get away from adhering to the law (which is the law of the land) and local costume. I found her video informative n eye opening, without getting hung up on petty details n personal issues. Bottom line for ppl wanting to work in kuwaiti schools? Do your homework and get your paperwork and visa in tip top shape before embarking in this part of the world.

You can not get your visa in tip top shape. It is the school’s responsibility to complete the required paperwork for the work visa and it can not be done until you actually arrive in Kuwait. We all enter on a visitor visa. We are at the mercy of the school to complete our paperwork in time and for the most part they are good about it. Unfortunately there are some exceptions.

This doesn’t just happen to schools. A couple months ago at my workplace, I was talking to a college who’s from another country, then all of a sudden a manager comes in and says there’s a “belediya” scare. The colleague I was talking to immediately stops talking to me and walks out. I stand up and go to their office to see them packing their stuff, and when I walk out of the office half of the other employees are doing the same. I was confused and went back to my office. Then someone who I don’t see often at the office comes in and asks me if I’m on a visitors visa, and I tell them I’m Kuwaiti. Turns out, half the office was working on visitors visas.

In the following three months, the employees on the visitors visas were instructed to stay home until everything could be sorted out. A week after the scare the director called in everyone, including the illegals, for a meeting and basically threatened the employees who worked at home, saying that if they didn’t work 100% like they do in the office, they would be fired, no exceptions. It was extremely unprofessional, and the situation with half the people at home made working there difficult. It was the last straw for me in that company and I quite within a month of things finally settling down.

This isn’t only my workplace, it’s tons of places in Kuwait. Either we streamline the process of sponsorship so things can be taken care of within a short time span (less than a week), and don’t say it can’t be done because that’s how it is in the UAE, or we abolish the legal slavery that is the sponsorship system.

Absolutely Mohammed! I am for the abolishment of the slavery system called the ‘sponsorship system’. Not only would it be more efficient for governments to move towards more of a work visa system, but they can easily implement visa quotas which is beneficial for them. The UAE has streamlined the residency system, it takes me about 2 days to update my residency in the UAE with top notch equipment, an organized system with instructions in English, and further, every time I update my visa I must go through HIV testing and fingerprinting. Expats from some countries go through further medical tests. People like Mark should not need a sponsor, he has lived in Kuwait all his life and as long as he has no criminal charges against him, he should be able to sponsor himself on a self-sponsorship visa. What about a male who marries a Kuwaiti, should they have to have a sponsor to work in the country? No. Although females can take Kuwaiti citizenship, why should they be forced to be under a sponsorship when they are the mother of Kuwaiti children to work? What if they don’t want Kuwaiti citizenship? There needs to be visa re-structuring in all GCC nations, some of the population needs to be able to have self-sponsorship visas and the State benefits. I brought up different scenarios, but bottom-line is this, there are better ways to control the expat populations than the sponsorship system. It is an archaic system and I trust if anyone is going to change the system it will be the UAE. It is the most efficient government in the GCC. What if Kuwait stops visitor visas, do all these people flee – that can’t be good for a country. Definitely the visa system is not functioning here if companies, schools, etc. are forced to have the majority of their workforce on visit visas? Or are they trying to beat the system? If so, then the government needs to severely penalize these companies/schools like in the UAE.

While that does happen it sounds like you’re basically working for a garage level factory. A professional company should not have a baladiya 3 month scare like that.

Every single person that works in a school should HAVE to provide a police clearance check and a LEGAL working visa- fact is, anybody working with vulnerable minors should be police checked and every single angle should be covered to ensure their documents are legit.
let’s not forget a few months back we had a paedophile working in a school in Salmiya.

This is a very good point. The number of teachers coming to Kuwait without their criminal record checks already processed is concerning. The verification is needed for the work visa, but if it’s happening six months after arrival then there certainly are risks. The process does need to be streamlined, especially in the education sector. I wonder though, is it the nannies and maids that people are afraid will run? I don’t think business professionals and teachers would leave if they were given unsponsored work permits. We are under no obligation to stay, even with sponsored permits, unless you are allowing someone to hold your passport. I often hear this practice is mostly applied to domestic workers. Am I wrong?

Me working at a private school being a kuwaiti citizen, it is not always the fault of the foreigners. sometimes the schools refuse to do their visas saying that its fine and there won’t be any problems for them.

Good video. She did the right thing by posting this. She is being railroaded. This is definitely not just a concern for potential employees but also for parents looking to enroll their children in private schools. Things NEED to be done by the books so we have a sense of security over who is teaching our kids and to ensure stability in the classroom!

It IS getting harder and harder to attract quality educators to kuwait because it is expensive here (rent, imports etc) and salaries do not seem to match the rising cost of living. Also the media abroad portrays this region as dangerous and unstable. So school owners will do whatever it takes to get native English speakers here — so they can keep charging parents that high or are-school tuition. Even the once-respectable schools are straight up lying to western teachers to get them here. When you’re a teacher being promised these things as part of your salary package and work conditions by a seemingly trustworthy administrator — often at a professionally organized recruiting job fair, or through a teacher placement agency–you tend to believe. Yet so often now, a lot of shadiness occurs once you’ve settled in a bit. The schools and Ministries are to blame — both. The teachers who are made to hide and live in fear are the victims.

I beg to differ – guidance to UK nationals coming to Kuwait and also US nationals clearly states that you cannot work in Kuwait on a visit visa- and no matter WHAT your employer promises you, they are not the governing body who issue work permits -you should be responsible enough to realise that you are either saying yes to their terms and thus breaking the law or wait for legal status before coming and risk not getting the position . This is life and people who are ‘caught’ or complain that the schools haven’t done their papers yet should stop sugar coating it.
And if you DON’T know that because you haven’t done your research enough before moving halfway across the world to work, then really ….

The government should crack down on private school tuitions honestly. 4000 KD for a year’s tuition for one student? How much of that money is going back into the school facilities and paying teachers?

Not much. I have a teacher friend who says that the conditions he teaches in are the same as a US public school (government, free school) and that if US parents paid $12,000 a year…roughly 4,000KD and their children were given the same conditions the school would never survive. He was led to believe he would be teaching at a luxurious private school when he was recruited. He plans to leave Kuwait when his contract is up and he is a very enthusiastic, caring teacher.

This teacher can’t speak proper english. Listen to the major grammatical errors and her difficulties in compiling a sentence without mistakes.

Easy solution teachers need a union then they all go on strike.
schools will be forced to pay full expenses for teachers while they become legal while sitting at home. school fees will go so high the public will go nuts.

Then the government will step in and make it worse.

Now lets talk about getting a drivers license!!!

Ever think about why someone would want to work illegally in this country?

Wouldn’t it be nice if the government was as quick and efficient at everything else as it is at deporting people?

Maybe because they cannot get a job that pays like that in their own country because they aren’t qualified for the position – see earlier posts , or because they have something to hide – see post on paedophile teaching in a school in Kuwait last year.

Many people simply want to work and travel and see the world. Also, not all schools in Kuwait pay well. Many are the same as an American school and it is not as difficult to get a teaching job in America as it used to be. I have also met a few teachers who desired to live in and explore the Middle East, despite the fact that family members were very worried for their safety, because in America there is such a negative view of this side of the world. They wanted to come and see for themselves. I think you do not have a realistic view of the life of an international teacher Inkuwait. I wonder how many teachers you have befriended.

Every teacher that comes to work in Kuwait has to provide a police clearance check in order to work with children and thus get a work visa. This teacher had a violation (and it’s not traffic…it’s driving under the influence) and could not get the required clearance paper. The school gave her many opportunities to get done and she didn’t, so she was asked to leave. Posting this video is her petty attempt at revenge.

Obs…
But she should have been told that before leaving US no? Why you brought her here in the first place?

I also blame Kuwait for change the rules from one day to another, playing with peoples lives and livelihood’s.

I am employer and I know the mess we are in, but at same time its our job to keep them safe.

Possibly think – now correct me if I’m wrong here…. We may not really want someone who was done for drunk driving to be ‘an educator of tomorrow’s generation’…. Just throwing that out there… Nothing ‘personal’.

Parental involvement may be the key to this. You do not have to be particularly well-connected to verify the credentials and visa status of your children’s teachers. Thus far, they have all passed “inspection”. I would be a nightmare for the school had they not. You are only a “victim” if you are a willing or oblivious participant. I take who has contact or educates my child seriously.

In order for schools to process potential employee’s paperwork, and ultimately their work visa, the candidate must provide COMPLETED documents to the school from the US, Canada, etc. Tickets are issued well in advance, due to the summer rush in Kuwait, on the good faith that the new teachers are doing their part to have all documents ready for the work visa to be completed. Our school has extensive communication regarding the process and makes certain that all new hires have contact with administration and HR over the summer should they encounter any problems with their visa paperwork.
Any American can enter Kuwait on a visit visa and show up at the school that has hired them, with or without the proper documents. Most schools, mine included, are doing everything to comply with the very strict laws in Kuwait regarding work visas, and when teachers are found to not have the necessary documents or are not able to acquire such paperwork, they are sent home-through no fault but their own.

@admin,

What are those required documents and for those applicants coming from the US, as the lady in this video, are they required to have their degrees authenticated by the US State Department and further validated through the Kuwait Foreign Ministry or Kuwait Embassy in Washington DC? Do you require them to have a police clearance? Would it be beneficial for schools to have the ability to issue a temporary work visa prior to landing rather than a visit visa? You know, if schools are hindered by ‘the process’ then they should unilaterally meet with the Ministry of Education to give them their suggestions on improving the system in order to make the process easier. They should be responsive to your suggestions as schools and should want to work with you to improve the system, after all, that is their job.

@ahmed,

Yes all degrees and transcripts must be authenticated by the Kuwait Embassy in Washington, there are several medical tests and individuals must be cleared by the FBI, not just the local police. Our school owner has met with and created up a committee among private school owners to try and work with the Ministry, to no avail. Paperwork was unilaterally stopped, without explanation by the Ministry over the summer, making things even more difficult to finish before the beginning of the school year.
A temporary work visa would be a blessing and perhaps being able to complete certain documentation here in Kuwait as well, as the process can take upwards of 6 months in the States. I remember when I first came to Kuwait, fingerprints were taken here and sent to Interpol for verification, not sure why the process changed so drastically. Consider also that some American teachers are coming from other foreign countries when they are hired, they have to wait until the summer when they are back in the US to do much of the required paperwork.

First of all, as business owner, I agree that the way the system is done can make it difficult to get visas and employ people the proper way. Yet, the sponsorship system is as much a headache for the sponsor as it is for the expat. Most people don’t know that when expats take off and don’t pay their debts it is the sponsors who have to pay. If a expat commits a crime and is deported the sponsor is held to pay. If an expat over stays his visa it affects the sponsor as well. If your a sponsor you can’t travel unless you make sure that none of the sponsees are in debt or overstaying their visas.
As for the USA, they actually do have a sponsorship system and I know many who complain about their passports being taken by their sponsors. If you work in the US you have to have a visa and the company you work for becomes your sponsor. The difference is that it is easier to find a new sponsor within the three months that they give you if you lose your job. And losing your job is very easy since most companies will not give you a contract nor accommodations.

What I find funny is that this woman said she did not know amything when all you have to do is look at the website for the US embassy in Kuwait. ALL the information you need is there. What I find is that people come here and for many years were able to get away with all kinds of things and now the Government is cracking down as they should. I don’t say that this country is perfect as there is no such thing. But the Labour Laws here are way better than even the USA and UK… When applied and enforced.
As a non Kuwaiti married to a Kuwait I agree that it is silly that I can’t work legally if I was under my wife’s sponsorship. But I have faith that eventually the laws will change to make it easier. You have to remember that Kuwait is the only country in the GCC with a Parliament and this causes for a lot of political intrigue that has kept Kuwait in the same state as it was in the 60s and 70s infrastructure wise and when it comes to laws. The other GCC countries have a ruler who gets things done quickly and in ways that will benefit the country.

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