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Article

8 Dec 2014

Author:
James M. Dorsey, Daily News (Egypt)

Gulf agreement on improved migrant worker conditions unlikely to end activist pressure

"Gulf agreement on improved migrant worker conditions unlikely to end activist pressure", 03 Dec 2014

Wealthy Gulf nations have agreed on measures to improve the working and living conditions of migrant workers who constitute a substantial segment, if not the majority, in a number of Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) member states. The measures constitute a bid to fend off more far-reaching demands by human rights and trade union activists who no longer exclusively target Qatar because of its hosting of the 2022 World Cup but the region at large...

A series of recent incidents in Qatar suggests however that the new measures involving wage protection, speedier settlement of labour disputes, skill development and testing programs, and a pre-departure orientation for migrant workers fall short of the concerns of activists rooted in the region’s kafala or sponsorship system that puts workers at the mercy of their employers...