When it comes to take-home salaries, there’s a clear income disparity between expatriates and citizens in Kuwait. But, with high unemployment and inflation rates affecting some countries, many expats consider Kuwait as a haven to enjoy a better quality of life. “I am grateful that at least in Kuwait, I have a job and a stable source of income, even if it’s barely fulfilling my family’s needs. Yet, I only hope that there would be more support from the government or employers to reduce our suffering from the heavy burden of expenses,” Sanaa, a 33-year-old expat, told Kuwait Times.
A recently published report revealed the average monthly wage of citizens employed in the government sector reached KD 1,555 by the end of June 2023, while for citizens working in the private sector, it reached KD 1,297. On the other hand, the average monthly wage for expatriates reached around KD 343. Considering the high cost of living and the global increase in prices, coupled with the expensive lifestyle in Kuwait, incomes of both citizens and expats have been affected, with the latter being the most impacted group.
Sanaa, a working mother living with her working spouse and two children, spoke of their struggles coping with their salaries amid the expenses they are required to pay regularly each month. Sanaa highlighted rent takes up the largest portion of their income, almost 50 percent of it, while household expenses, mostly on food, eat up the rest. “Even with me and my husband’s salaries combined, we barely cover our costs until the end of the month,” she stressed.
She complained about the very slow rate of salary raises for expats — her husband has been working for more than 10 years in Kuwait, yet his monthly wage hasn’t reached KD 600. Since expats don’t have the right to free schooling or obtain a driving license except under specific conditions, expenses on private education and transportation make things even more challenging for them, according to Sanaa.
“The total expenditure on all of these needs is making it very difficult for us to save even a penny,” she said. Riding to work by bus every day, having their children go to school on foot and taking bank loans are some decisions that Sanaa and her family took to better manage their finances and cope with their situation.
The problem of fulfilling basic necessities is common among expats. Another expat single mother, who preferred not to reveal her name, echoed the same concerns to Kuwait Times: “I mainly suffer from expenses that are essential, such as rent, health insurance in both public and private sector, children’s education, residency fees, transportation and other necessary matters,” she said. She emphasized on transportation costs, as due to not having a driving license, she resorts to taxis for being safer. However, they can be expensive compared to her monthly salary.
“Not to mention the other things that people need to enjoy from time to time, which also require money, such as visiting malls, coffeeshops and so on. The problem increases during the summer, because even if we decide to save up rather than travel to our home country, malls and other activities can still affect our budget,” she rued.
Abdulaziz Al-Osaimi, professor of economics and public policy, explained the factors behind the disparity of salaries between expatriates and citizens. He pointed out that hiring foreign workers is a big advantage that many countries use, as they are known for their lower labor costs. Therefore, providing lower salaries to expatriates has become a global phenomenon and not just in Kuwait, as most companies around the world look to hire cheap labor to optimize costs. “In this case, if equal ranges of salaries were paid to both citizens and expats, then it would make no sense to hire expats anymore,” he said.
Another factor, Osaimi said, is that salaries in Kuwait are not just decided based on the kind of jobs performed or the amount of work by employees — it’s based on the political system of wealth distribution. Wealthy countries, Osaimi explained, show their commitment to social spending and individual support through equal wealth distribution among citizens, which sometimes takes different forms such as issuing direct payments to individuals.
“It’s the same as when the US provided direct cash to its citizens during COVID-19 pandemic to help them through the crisis,” he said. Since politicians are the ones who distribute wealth through imposed salary ranges, it is no doubt that they are only concerned with the welfare of citizens and not expats, he highlighted.
However, Osaimi voiced his personal opinion that he’s totally against companies’ internal policies that offer lower salaries to expats based on racial discrimination. He supports calls for providing extra benefits to them to bridge the wage gap, such as easier access to health insurance, driving licenses and accommodation.