The Kuwaiti government Wednesday decided to raise salaries for staff in the backbone oil sector after the labor union at Kuwait Petroleum Corporation (KPC) warned an all-out strike if their demand for a pay rise could not be met, Xinhua reported.
According to the state KUNA news agency, the rise offer would be different for Kuwaiti and non-Kuwaiti employees.
Government spokesman Ali Al-Rashed said senior officials would be granted an increase of 16.5 percent of basic salary, while administrators would receive a hike of 33 percent.
Technicians, who represent two thirds of the workers, would get a rise of 66 percent of basic salary in addition to the promotional allowance, he said.
However, as for non-Kuwaiti employees, they would receive an increase in allowances between 25 to 50 Kuwaiti dinars (around 87. 5 to 175 U.S. dollars ) per month, in addition to housing allowance of 75 to 80 dinars (around 263 to 280 dollars).
The labor union at the KPC last Sunday said they were planning a nationwide strike on Sept. 18 if the government fails to increase salaries for oil sector employees before the date.
A nation wide strike in the oil sector may result in the loss of 350 million dollars per day for the fourth largest exporter of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC).