To the Minister of Social Affairs... Gas Station Workers

We all know that there are midday hours during which workers are prohibited from working. Given that gas stations have a unique operational nature that prevents them from being shut down, the companies that own these stations and are responsible for the labor must be mandated to provide a suitable working environment that safeguards workers’ rights, immediately—even if only by temporarily providing air coolers and water mist—until a contractor is hired to prepare an appropriate workspace, so as not to disrupt operations in these vital sectors.

The majority of this workforce consists of young men from very impoverished living conditions, who do not accept the jobs they perform. In addition to the heat and humidity, gasoline vapor poses a risk of causing serious respiratory illnesses among workers.

Currently, I propose mandating cooperative and charitable associations to supply gas stations with air humidifiers/coolers. This would bring joy to shareholders, who suffer psychologically watching these humble workers under such conditions, even if at the expense of sponsors or station owners. The cost is not high, as their workplaces often lack even electric fans to circulate hot air and reduce humidity and fuel odors.

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There is also a need to mandate that owners, in the future, cover and cool these stations, equipped with ventilation systems to prevent suffocation. These workers have the right to stop working under such unsuitable conditions, during the hours of work ban established by your ministry.

We previously wrote to your esteemed office on behalf of these workers, and others have shared their plight on social media, but without any results. We hope that your honorable office has a place for them in its heart and mind, and our hope remains strong; otherwise, we would not have written. We urge you to expedite relief for their suffering by notifying fuel station owners that your esteemed ministry may be reluctant to prohibit filling station workers from working during the ban hours, due to the lack of health conditions commensurate with their internationally guaranteed rights.

A Kuwaiti writer