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.
This e-handbook is a comprehensive guide for parliamentarians and parliamentary officials on legislating effectively against modern slavery-related crimes. The e-Handbook covers topics such as: gathering cross-party support; creating and r...Read More
A recent law in California is poised to help California consumers make better and more informed purchasing choices. The California Transparency in Supply Chains Act (Steinberg, 2010) (the “Act”) provides consumers with critical information ...Read More
Safe and sustainable employment is one of the most effective ways to prevent the exploitation of vulnerable individuals and the re-exploitation of survivors of human trafficking and other forms of slavery. As employers, companies can offer quality t...Read More
The purpose of this guide is twofold. The first is to document lessons learned from using Feminist Participatory Action Research (FPAR) to study the experiences and drivers of labour exploitation – and advocate for change – with workers from thr...Read More
2025 © Copyright, RESPECT International. All Rights Reserved. Website Disclaimer | Privacy Policy
