South and South East Asian migrant workers are the backbone of the economy for Gulf Countries. As world class events such as the #Qatar2022 #FIFA is imminently close, Asian migrant workers will be an integral part to host and participate in these events. However, 10,000 Asian migrant workers die in the Gulf states every year because of harsh labor conditions. Migrant workers account for 52% of the Arab Gulf’s entire 58 million population mostly occupying the low paying sectors like construction and domestic service. In these jobs, they often face abuse and work for long hours in conditions that put their mental and physical health at risk. So why not leave? Complicated work contracts keep and trap migrant workers in harsh labor conditions in their sponsored countries by withholding their passports. The practice is beneficial to the employer and they avoid structural labor reforms. Gulf countries must recognize that their infrastructures are made with the blood and sweat of Asian migrant workers. How did this happen? How can we save migrant workers from the South and South East Asians in harsh labor conditions?
South and South East Asian migrant workers are the backbone of the economy for Gulf Countries. As world class events such as the #Qatar2022 #FIFA is imminently close, Asian migrant workers will be an integral part to host and participate in these events. However, 10,000 Asian migrant workers die in the Gulf states every year because of harsh labor conditions. Migrant workers account for 52% of the Arab Gulf’s entire 58 million population mostly occupying the low paying sectors like construction and domestic service. In these jobs, they often face abuse and work for long hours in conditions that put their mental and physical health at risk. So why not leave? Complicated work contracts keep and trap migrant workers in harsh labor conditions in their sponsored countries by withholding their passports. The practice is beneficial to the employer and they avoid structural labor reforms. Gulf countries must recognize that their infrastructures are made with the blood and sweat of Asian migrant workers. How did this happen? How can we save migrant workers from the South and South East Asians in harsh labor conditions?