Foreign Labour in Qatar
Foreign Labour in Qatar
December 1st, 2014
Shervin Yousef-Zadeh - Team Member Studying the Gulf States
A limited native population size combined with ever increasing demands for infrastructural growth has made Qatar one of the largest hubs in the Gulf Region for incoming migrant workers. Of the 2 million living in the state, only 10% are Qatari nationals.[1] The country has brought in close to 1.4 million migrant labourers since 2000 in an effort to serve the demands of the construction, service, and domestic labour sectors.[2] The rapid migration of workers to the country has outpaced legislative considerations towards the development of foreign worker rights. With Qatar’s recent FIFA World Cup bid set for 2022, the issues surrounding the treatment of migrant workers and the country’s growing dependence on them have received increased international attention.
Employers in Qatar operate under a worker sponsorship system that inherently limits the freedom and mobility of migrant workers. The system, known as kalafa, binds foreign workers to a single sponsor, their employer, upon entering the country for the duration of their stay. Once sponsored, foreign workers must gain approval from their current employer to change jobs or leave the country. Since there are few provisions for how employers can treat migrants, and because these existing provisions (such as the 2004 Labour Law) are poorly enforced, migrants live at the mercy of their employers with seemingly inexistent protections from the government.[3] Employers can block workers from obtaining new jobs or “exit permits” to leave the country by simply refusing to cooperate. In the event of employer abuse, migrant workers must deal with lengthy bureaucratic procedures due to an absence of trade unions in the nation.[4]
In 2013, Labour and Social Affairs Minister Abdullah al Khulaifi announced labour reforms through a new law that would be arriving “soon”.[5] The new labour law aims to abolish the existing kalafa system in favour of an automated government one to grant migrants work and exit visas.[6] The law would block employers from illegally confiscating worker passports through increased fines. While the law remains to be approved by the Qatari Advisory Council, it has seen split support from Qatari citizens and employers. 47% of Qatari citizens want “stricter sponsorship rules”, with 89% believing that foreign workers have contributed significantly to the “development of Qatar”.[7] However, the Qatar Chamber, the representative body of the Qatari private sector, believes that the current sponsorship system is a necessary means of holding migrant workers responsible for their debts and contractual obligations.[8]
While new labour reforms are yet to be implemented, they will not conclusively solve the migrant worker dilemma in Qatar. There is no doubt that the new labour law would improve the standard of living for migrant workers, yet it would only be scratching the surface. The law would not provide for a minimum wage or the right for migrants to form or join a workers’ union.[9] With migrants making up 94% of the Qatari work force yet receiving no benefits from the state, the infrastructure of the Qatari economy will begin to rest more and more on a foundation of exploitative and abusive practices. If migrant worker rates continue to increase at their current rate, the Advisory Council will at one point be forced to appease worker demands, signalling a significant change in the dynamics between those who enjoy living within Qatar’s dessert landscape, and those who have been forced to build it.
