Global union hits Saudi Arabia for abusing migrant workers

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A global labor federation accused Saudi Arabia of abusing thousands of migrant workers, including Filipinos, in a complaint filed on Wednesday with a United Nations-backed labor organization.

The complaint filed by Building and Wood Workers’ International (BWI) urged the International Labor Organization (ILO) to investigate the oil-rich Gulf state for “severe human rights abuses and wage theft,” which it said affected at least 21,000 workers over the past decade.

“The complaint emphasizes the exploitative living and working conditions among the country’s vast migrant workforce: conditions that BWI notes are akin to forced labor. As Saudi Arabia positions itself to host the 2034 Fifa World Cup, this complaint demands immediate attention from Fifa and the international community,” BWI said in a statement.

READ: 1500 displaced Saudi OFWs to get paid by March

Local trade unions Federation of Free Workers and Sentro ng mga Nagkakaisa at Progresibong Manggagawa were among the unions and human rights organizations that backed BWI’s complaint.

Forced labor

Among the many cases reported to BWI and other human rights organizations, findings from direct evidence provided by 193 migrant construction workers from India, Pakistan, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, and the Philippines, showed that indicators of forced labor were widespread.

Among the findings of the survey were 85 percent of the workers reported debt bondage, while 65 percent reported retention of passports and identity documents. The workers also reported restrictions on terminating and exiting employment contracts freely (63 percent), and withholding of their wages (46 percent).

BWI alleged Saudi Arabia violated ILO conventions on forced labor, freedom of association, and collective bargaining. Saudi Arabia is a member of the ILO and ratified the forced labor convention.

“Saudi Arabia, where trade unions are banned, blatantly disregards international labor standards and fails to compensate migrant workers who have suffered abuses for over a decade,” BWI Secretary General Ambet Yuson said.

“With Fifa’s decision on the 2034 World Cup bid looming and the required construction of at least 10 new stadiums and infrastructure, it is imperative for Fifa and Saudi Arabia to resolve the outstanding wages of over 20,000 workers for whom we have provided evidence, and to establish mechanisms that prevent any further abuse before even considering the bid. Fifa must stop placing itself above international labor norms and its own human rights statutory obligations,” he said.