Prompted by international scrutiny of working conditions on flagship projects in Qatar and the UAE, in 2016, the Business & Human Rights Resource Centre surveyed construction companies on their approach to safeguarding migrant workers’ rights in both countries.
Two years on and with a second survey, the findings show that while a consistent but small group of construction companies demonstrate real commitment to tackling the risks to migrant workers in their operations, the overwhelming majority operate with high risks to human rights and continued disregard for workers’ welfare. In both years, more than 70% of surveyed companies did not respond and over 60% did not have a public commitment to human rights.
This briefing analyses the survey responses and public human rights commitments of construction companies with current projects in the region and makes recommendations to companies, clients and governments to advance the rights of migrant workers.
An overview of the risks to migrant workers on construction projects across the Gulf. Migrant workers make up between 60% and 90% of the workforce in the six countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC). Low-wage construction workers are at...
Business & Human Rights Resource Centre has quizzed 100 construction companies operating in Qatar and the UAE on the measures they are taking to stop exploitation of migrant workers. Only 22 responded, indicating a shocking level of inaction. Despite increasing...
This report gives an insight into the link between corporate practices in the Arabian Gulf’s engineering and construction sector and the recruitment – in South Asian countries like India and Bangladesh – of many of the migrant workers who staff the industry’s projects.
The present report sets out recommended action to improve accountability and access to remedy for victims of business-related human rights abuses through non-Statebased grievance mechanisms. It has been compiled as part of the Accountability and Rem...Read More
Considering the intrinsic transnational nature of trafficking, the partners of the project “Development of a Transnational Referral Mechanism for Victims of Trafficking between Countries of Origin and Destination – TRM-EU” decided to develop a...Read More
In the case where an unaccompanied child victim of trafficking is willing to return and that the return option is validated during the best interest determination process, early coordination is requested. A family assessment should be undertaken in ...Read More
First released in November 2017, the Issara Worker Voice-Driven Ethical Recruitment Toolkit has been expanded and updated through the years to meet the needs of suppliers and recruitment agencies in South and Southeast Asia. This new October 2022 v...Read More
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