Muscat: Over 100 illegal workers have been arrested in Oman as the Sultanate continues its crackdown on labour and residency violators.

Last week, 109 illegal workers from Muttrah, Ruwi and Hamriyah were arrested by the Royal Oman Police as part of an inspection campaign carried out jointly with Ministry of Manpower.

Speaking about the crackdown, a senior official at the Ministry of Manpower said that these campaigns were the result of the Ministry’s monitoring of the implementation of the Labour Law and to ensure that the authorised foreign labour force worked with employers according to official work permits.

He explained: “The Ministry of Manpower appeals to employers and workers to abide by the provisions of the Labour Law and the ministerial decrees implemented for the private sector in terms of the necessity of hiring expat work forces in the licensed professions and within the scope of their work.” 

In May this year, several nationals were arrested, for allowing more than 5,000 expats to work without permits for other companies. As per Article 18 of the Labour Law, an employer shall not allow any expatriate worker, under his sponsorship, to work for another person. “The employer is also not allowed to employ an expatriate worker in any profession other than what is mentioned in the permit,” the law states.

The Manpower official urged expatriates to follow all residency laws and urged citizens as well as residents to report any illegal resident to the police and not give them shelter or employment.