MANAMA, Sept 2: Bahrain’s labour watchdog invited employers on Saturday to hand over the passports of absconding foreign workers in the Gulf state which hosts many Asian workers.

The embassies of India, Bangladesh, Pakistan and the Philippines as well as three Arab states — Egypt, Jordan and Iraq — would collect the passports of their respective nationals from the employers throughout September, the Labour Market Authority said in a statement.

The statement, received by AFP, did not give an estimate of absconding workers. It said employers would not be fined or otherwise penalised if they handed over the passports.

The government constituted the watchdog two years ago to promote the employment of Bahrainis and make them more competitive than foreign workers by imposing more taxes on the recruitment and employment of foreigners.—AFP