By Arkan Ali
SULAIMANI, Kurdistan Region – Every day from dawn to dusk the streets and sidewalks around Sulaimani City’s Grand Mosque bustle with men waiting for work, unskilled day laborers who see many in the city prospering in the booming economy, and unable to understand why they have been left behind.
They spend most of their time waiting. Every few hours, as soon as a contractor drives up looking for workers, they rush the car, elbowing each other for a chance to work and earn just a little cash.
“Most days I go home empty handed. I get to work only two or three times a week,” says one of the men, identifying himself as Bahman. “The government doesn’t pay attention to our needs,” complains another,” who like fellow job seekers has come to the city from another part of the province.
Omar Nanawa, a workers’ rights activist says that despite the influx of companies to the region – city authorities licensed 5,000 companies last year, 1,000 of them foreign -- unemployment among the youth remains high.
“Imported foreign laborers, the growing population and thousands of skilled workers coming out of the universities and technical institutes” are among the reasons behind unemployment, Nanawa believes.
Unemployment is not limited to unskilled workers only. University graduates also complain they cannot find jobs.
But Soran Ahmad, director of the government’s licensing department, says that companies offer opportunities but graduates prefer to wait for government jobs, which pay better and are more secure.
“Workers try to get government jobs,” Ahmed says. “They do not want to work in the low wage sector and they do not think the private sector is secure.”
In an effort to tackle unemployment, the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) now requires companies who want foreign laborers to apply for clearance from the Department of Employment, particularly for unskilled workers. The department also limits residency for foreign workers in Kurdistan to only one year.
“We have a lot of work but cannot find workers,” says Adil Hilal, owner of a garbage collecting company.
Contrary to claims by local residents who believe foreign workers steal their jobs, Hilal says his company had to bring 250 workers from Baghdad, India and Iran, because it could not find them locally.
“We have been advertising jobs, but Kurdish workers feel ashamed to do this kind of work,” Hilal says.
Asos Najmadin, head of the Employment and Training Department, encourages job seekers to visit her office to get in touch with potential employers.
“This year, we have provided job opportunities in blacksmith workshops, carpentry, construction, computer, and tailoring,” she says. “Any unemployed person who wants to start a small business will be given a small loan to start,” she adds.
