Fears for migrant workers in Gulf
By Robin Wigglesworth in Abu Dhabi
Financial Times
On the outskirts of Dubai, far away from the glass and stainless steel ziggurats of banks and hotels, Indian, Bangladeshi and Pakistani workers stumble out of their buses as they return home to Sonapur after a 12-hour shift at various ostentatious developments in the city.
Silently they enter one of the sprawling ghettos of labour camps that is home to more than 100,000 blue-collar servants and workers. Wet work clothes are slung limply over the rails and the ground is moist with raw sewage escaping from the rusty pipes on the ground.
In spite of appearances, conditions and pay for the millions of manual workers in the United Arab Emirates have actually improved in recent years, but the global financial crisis threatens to unravel progress made in labour reforms as the credit crunch hits the real estate and construction industry in the Gulf.
Several projects have been delayed or are being “reviewed” but major construction companies contacted by the Financial Times say that they are not laying off workers. However, Mohinder, overseer of a leafy but old and decrepit labour camp, says several companies in the emirate have already started shipping large numbers of Indian workers back home.
The problem is particularly acute in Dubai, the previously booming commercial hub of the UAE. It is weighed down by the large debts of the government and state-affiliated companies.
“We are very worried,” says Nada Al-Nashif, the International Labour Organisation’s regional head for the Arab states. “The slowdown in the construction industry is definitely going to have an impact on employment . . . Things look bleak for the next year at least.”
There are nearly 3m Indians, Bangladeshi and Pakistanis in the UAE, the majority of whom are manual and construction workers, according to Human Rights Watch.
Though manual workers only earn 3-5 dirhams an hour, they make up the highest proportion of construction companies’ costs and their jobs are particularly vulnerable due to the lack of employment protection.
Some workers at Sonapur – which means “place of gold” in Hindi – say they have already been told to either take a near 40 per cent pay cut or be sacked, so many have gone home.
The fallout will not be confined to the UAE, experts warn. The return of hundreds of thousands of young, male workers to their home countries at a time of great economic turmoil could also intensify domestic labour market stresses.
Human rights activists fear the economic downturn will exacerbate Gulf companies’ sometimes patchy record of paying workers on time. UAE manual workers have rioted in the past due to poor treatment, paltry wages and tardy payment, most infamously at the construction site of Burj Dubai, the world’s biggest tower.
“It’s possible that unscrupulous cash-strapped companies will just close up shop and abandon their workers in the UAE without the [mandatory end of employment gratuity] or the return ticket,” says Bill Van Esveld, a researcher at Human Rights Watch. “This has happened in the past.”
Anwar Gargash, minister of state for foreign affairs, says the UAE has the means to deal with a potentially rapid exodus of manual labourers as the credit crunch continues to drain the construction industry of funding.
“Obviously, we have the mechanisms in place to deal with labour demands. We would have to make sure that wages are paid and that any return in labourers is done in an orderly and legal way,” Mr Gargash says.
He adds it is “premature” to consider government intervention as a means to prevent developers’ financial dire straits leaving low-paid construction workers out of pocket or marooned and unemployed in the UAE. However, he reiterates that the country takes its reputation very seriously.
“You have to understand the philosophy, which is that the government will do everything within reason to make sure this situation does not change our record on labour,” he says. “We do not have 100 per cent success on labour issues, but we are working very hard so we can continue to develop responsibly.”
Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2008
The FT usues such lingo.
As you say, awareness of the problem is half of the battle.
Forgot to add to - "If or when they realize this and act accordingly, only then can stringent rules be relaxed and they be trusted not to cross the line and endanger public safety. Only then will people who sympathize with their plight be more willing to come out and help."
Criticism - why wait until conditions are safe before people come out to help?
- True, some just jump in and fight - kudos to them for their bravery and fearlessness.
- Others may chose to prepare for battle. To each his/her own.
*****************************************
Don't want no drama,
No, no drama, no, no, no, no drama
"glass and stainless steel ziggurats of banks and hotels"
Who the frick uses a word like "ziggurat"??? It doesn't even make sense. A ziggurat is a temple isn't it?
Anyways, it's good that these cases are being reported outside of the region.
it may be in the government's interest to "retain' these workers during the downturn, by subsidizing their salaries.
Similar (NB: not same) thing here.
So the ones who have a job here should not be taking their anger out on other people. It's because they do that stringent laws have to be in place. Cause and effect. And the age old arguments by the "have nots" against the "haves" - to all of us to a greater or lesser degree.
Those that lucky enough to be here should count their blessings and not whine / whinge about why the world (the host country and everybody else) owes them a living. Granted, we sympathize with their struggles but they are not the only ones struggling. We ALL struggle, physically and emotionally. I have to support my family. I'm actually paying for quite a lot and have been doing so for years. I used to live on RM700 every month about QR800 and that included my petrol bills (about RM400 already - very expensive in MY, despite being an oil producing country, but I won't get into that now...). Everyone, to a greater or lesser degree. But what goes around comes around. I have more to spend now, not that much but definitely more.
People who live in their own world and have themselves as the centre of the universe are the problem. Not the rest of the world. If or when they realize this and act accordingly, only then can stringent rules be relaxed and they be trusted not to cross the line and endanger public safety. Only then will people who sympathize with their plight be more willing to come out and help.
Only then can people argue and fight for the rights of these underprivileged people, without having it thrown back at them that these people's behaviours cause fear and the State/Country obviously has a responsibility to protect its people.
Note: it is not disputed much that "... manual workers ...poor treatment, paltry wages and tardy payment..."
But they use their numbers to get together and riot, causing damage to person and property - like in Malaysia. In MY, I agree with the human rights activists there when they brought up the infringements...
However, I must say that at that material time, the MY govt made mistakes in managing the situation, overly high handed controls (but because they didn't get their act together at that time) and made quite a lot of mistakes that gave certain quarters more ammunition to cause more damage. It caused disruptions to businesses, citizens feared for their safety, etc.
/I cannot say any more because this has been and is discussed in MY and it's only fair that if there's a debate/continuing one, anyone's who's interested should take it there where the informed debaters can contribute (as always, take opinions with a pinch of salt or a bucket of it until you can verify for yourself the truth or veracity of the information. Not everything is what it seems). Ok. I'm outta here. Ta!
*****************************************
Don't want no drama,
No, no drama, no, no, no, no drama
one fears that the worst is yet to come.