Kuwait Labour Law Labour disputes: Articles 123–132
Negotiation, reconciliation and arbitration of labour disputes.
This section covers collective labour disputes: disagreements between an employer and a group of workers, or their organisation, about working conditions.
The law sets a step-by-step route. The parties first try direct negotiation. If that fails, either side can request reconciliation through a committee. If reconciliation does not resolve it, the dispute goes to an arbitration panel with set timelines and powers. The Ministry can also intervene. Work must not stop while a dispute is being handled.
Individual disputes, such as one employee's end-of-service claim, follow a different route: the Labour Department first, then the court (Article 146).
Articles 123–132
- Collective disputes defined (Art. 123)Collective work disputes are the disputes that arise between one or more employers and all his or their workers or a…
- Direct negotiation (Art. 124)In the event of collective disputes, the involved parties shall resort to direct negotiations between the employer…
- Request for reconciliation (Art. 125)Either party to the dispute may submit to the competent ministry a request to settle the dispute amicably through…
- Reconciliation committee (Art. 126)The Work Disputes Reconciliation Committee shall consist of the following: a.
- Reconciliation hearing (Art. 127)The Reconciliation Committee shall hear the dispute within one month after the submittal of the application.
- Arbitration panel (Art. 128)The Arbitration Panel shall, in the event of collective work disputes, be formed as follows: a.
- Arbitration timeline (Art. 129)The Arbitration Panel shall hear the dispute within 20 days from the date of submittal of the documents to the…
- Arbitration panel powers (Art. 130)The Arbitration Panel shall have all the powers of the Court of Appeal in accordance with provisions of the law…
- Ministry intervention in disputes (Art. 131)As an exception from Article (126) of this Law, the competent Ministry may interfere in the event of collective…
- No work stoppage during disputes (Art. 132)The disputing parties shall not be allowed to suspend work, whether entirely or partially, during direct…
This text follows PAM's January 2025 consolidated English edition; this local copy was not independently checked and is not legal advice.
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