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Some workers reported that their employers blatantly disregarded risks to their health and
safety, demanding dangerous tasks that they had little choice but to perform. Omar J., a
worker from Bangladesh, said that he didn’t receive any safety training before beginning
his job laying cables and pipeline. 170 “Sometimes the job is very dangerous because we
have to go 100 meters, 200 meters inside the pipe [we are working on]. Sometimes we
can’t get oxygen. We don’t do this in front of safety inspectors, but as soon as they are
gone, the company tells us, ‘go, go!’” 171
Construction workers in Qatar face high risk of heatstroke and dehydration, with
temperatures reaching up to 50 degrees Celsius (122 degrees Fahrenheit) in the summer
months. 172 In 2007 Qatar passed a ban on midday work between June 15 and August 15. 173
The decree prohibited outdoor work between the hours of 11:30 and 3, and required
employers to provide workers with a shady place to rest. However, Human Rights Watch
saw workers at work during these hours on several sites during our June 2011 visit, after
the ban went into effect. While some of the workers interviewed for this report said their
employers gave them a mid-day break, others said that they continued to work during
these hours, even in hot summer months. 174
Problems in the Sponsorship System
Migrant construction workers in Qatar are subject to a sponsorship (or kafala) system that
gives employers inordinate control over workers in their employ, leaving them vulnerable
to abuse and exploitation. Qatar maintains one of the most restrictive sponsorship
systems in the Gulf region. Sponsoring employers have virtually unchecked authority to
cancel a worker’s residence visa (leading to detention and deportation), to deny
permission to change jobs, or to refuse workers the exit visa required before they can leave
the country. In May 2012 Undersecretary of Labor Hussain Al Mulla told local media that
“the sponsorship system will be replaced with a contract signed by the two parties,” and
that “the contract will stipulate the rights and duties of each party and will impose specific
170 Human Rights Watch interview with Omar J., labor camp near al-Khor, June 24, 2011.
171 Ibid.
172 Habib Toumi, “Qatar Sizzling as Temperatures Soar to 53 Degrees Celsius,” Gulf News, July 14, 2010, available at:
http://www.habibtoumi.com/2010/07/14/qatar-sizzling-as-temperatures-soar-to-53-degrees-celsius/ (accessed October 11,
2011).
173 Ministerial Decree No.16 of 2007, on file with Human Right Watch.
174 Human Rights Watch interview with Jay T., labor camp near al-Khor, June 24, 2011; Human Rights Watch interview with
Chandu R., labor camp near al-Khor, June 17, 2011.
69 HUMAN RIGHTS WATCH | JUNE 2012