Int. J. Middle East Stud. 21 (1989), 31-55. Printed in the United Slates of America Nasra M. Shah and Sulayman S. Al-Qudsi THE CHANGING CHARACTERISTICS OF MIGRANT WORKERS IN KUWAIT INTRODUCTION Kuwait is one of the gulf countries that has imported large numbers of temporary migrant workers over the last decade or so. The import of such workers was necessitated by the ambitious development plans that were made possible by the oil bonanza after 1973. Even prior to this influx, however, more than 70 percent of the labor force in Kuwait consisted of foreign workers. As the country has gone through economic and other changes, its goals concerning the magnitude and structure of the migrant worker population have undergone substantial revisions. These changes are reflected in such indicators as numbers of migrant workers; occupational and industrial distribution of the labor force; demo- graphic, ethnic, and educational characteristics of this labor force; and related wage levels. An examination of the above changes is the objective of the present study. We have analyzed the changing characteristics of the seven major nationality groups that comprise the labor force: Palestinians and Jordanians, Egyptians, Iraqis, Indians, Pakistanis and Bangladeshis, Syrians and Lebanese, and others. 1 The characteristics of migrant workers are examined in relation to those of the Kuwaitis. The analysis is based on data from two national surveys taken in 1977/1979 and 1983. Comparisons are made with census data wherever appro- priate. Before analyzing the data at hand, however, a brief discussion of the past trends in the labor force is presented, by way of background. BACKGROUND In 1965, Kuwait had about 141,000 foreign workers; in 1970, 177,000. This represents an increase of 25 percent. Between 1970 and 1975, the migrant workers increased from 177,000 to 213,000, an increase of 20 percent. The big jump in the number of foreign workers was witnessed between 1975 and 1980— from 213 to 385 thousand, or an increase of 80 percent. Over the last quinquen- nial (1980-1985) the number increased from 38.5,000 to 539,000, which represents an increase of 40 percent (Shah, 1986). Thus, the pace of worker migration declined somewhat in recent years but was still much higher than in the 1965- 1975 decade. With regard to the future magnitudes, the consensus seems to be © 1989 Cambridge University Press 0020-7438/89 $5.00 + .00 https://doi.org/10.1017/S0020743800032098 Published online by Cambridge University Press