Disputes Settlement Department

The Prerogatives:

• Receiving and registering labor complaints and disputes.
• Extending efforts to settle labor and complaints disputes cordially.
• Referring unsettled labor complaints and disputes to the competent tribunal.
• Looking into cases of strikes and collective stoppage from work, or threats to do so, slacking in production or partial or complete close down of establishments.
• Preparing data and statistics about complaints and disputes and proposing appropriate solutions to such a phenomenon.

Steps taken before the department:

1. Article 43 of the Omani labor law has stipulated that the procedures to look into cases pertaining to termination from work shall be as follows:

The terminated laborer shall submit an application requesting ceasing or cancellation of the termination, to the department or the concerned labor office within one week.

The department, or the concerned office shall take necessary steps to settle the dispute cordially by bridging the gaps between the two parties, in order to reach a satisfactory settlement to both of them.

In case a cordial settlement is not achieved during two weeks, the complaint accompanied by a memo which includes a summary of the dispute, justifications of the two parties and the department remarks shall be referred to the court.

The secretariat of the court shall, within three days from the date on which the application was submitted, fix a date for a session to look into it within two weeks in the maximum and shall notify the laborer and the employer and the department, or the office with the hearing date. A copy of the department or office memo shall be attached to the notification.

The court shall decide on the request to cease the implementation within a period not exceeding two weeks from the date of the first session and its order shall be final.

If the court decides to cease implementation, the employer shall allow the laborer to return to his work, or pay him ( her) a sum equivalent to his ( her) wage until the date of settling the case. The court shall decide on the case in a period not exceeding one month from the date the order to cease implementation has been issued.

If the court realizes that termination of the laborer was abusive , or against the law, it may issue an order allowing the laborer to return to work, or obliging the employer to pay him (her) a fair compensation.

2. Article 94 of the Omani labor law has stipulated the procedures relating to individual labor disputes: These include the following:

• The laborer shall resort to the system adopted by his employer.
• In case of the absence of such a system, or it exists but the laborer has not found a solution to his complaint, he ( she) may submit a request to the labor department, or office at his ( her) work premises within two years from the date he became entitled to the right sought.
• The department or the office shall record the complaint in a special register and endeavor to settle the dispute cordially, in the light of the clarifications and documents presented by the two parties.
• If no cordial settlement was achieved during two weeks, the department or the office shall refer the complaint accompanied by a memo which includes a summary of the dispute and justifications of the two parties and any remarks, to the court, in accordance with the provisions of the Omani labor law.

3. Articles 95 and 96 of the Omani labor law stipulated the procedures relating to collective labor disputes.

Summary:

The laborers shall firstly refer to the grievances system adopted by his employer. In case of the absence of such a system, or it has not solved the disputes, each party has the right to refer the dispute to the concerned labor department or office.

The labor director shall notify the two parties with his intension to cordially settle the dispute between them after identifying with them the dispute topics. The two parties shall not add other topics to the dispute after they have identified the matters with the labor director.

In case the two parties agreed to settle the dispute, the ministry shall issue a certificate which includes the settlement terms and conditions and keep a copy of same at the labor department. In this case the two parties shall not be allowed to re-discuss the topics agreed on for a period of no less than an year from the date the certificate was issued, unless the two parties have agreed during negotiations on a longer period.

If the labor director fails to notify the two parties with his intension to settle the dispute between them within 7 days, he shall refer the topic accompanied by all pertinent documents to the court to decide on it.