Kuwait to Fire Only 1,000 Expat Teachers Next Year According to Reports
Kuwait’s Education Ministry will review its policy aimed at replacing expatriate staff, according to a report. The sources said that the next layoffs would only be done “after ensuring the availability of qualified national elements and determining the extent of their ability to perform at the same level.”
This is so that there will not be a “sudden drop” in the level of education, as the current education quality has “some issues, including the low level of some teachers in schools,” the sources said. They also added that the ministry will “slow down termination decisions unless qualified Kuwaiti, GCC nationals or children of Kuwaiti mothers are available, and through hiring highly qualified expatriates that the ministry needs.”
This year’s termination of 1,800 teachers will not happen again next year, as no more than 1,000 teachers will be laid off, the sources added.
Earlier in March, it was reported that Kuwait fired over 1,500 teachers, regardless of gender, amid expat worker rule changes. The Education Ministry of Kuwait announced that they will be laying off more teachers and assessing the actual need of teachers in each education zone.
The decision on which teachers to let go will be announced before the end of May, after the second school term at Kuwait University and Public Authority for Applied Education and Training.
The number of expatriate teachers to be laid off will depend on their numbers and areas of expertise. Additionally, 143 expat administrators who were employed on a reward system were informed that their services were no longer required.
