Swiss court rules in FIFA's favor over Qatar labor lawsuit
A commercial court in Zurich has rejected a lawsuit against FIFA that accused the body of failing to project migrant workers in Qatar.
The legal action was filed against FIFA last month by Netherlands Trade Union Confederation (FNV)…
FNV asked the court to rule against FIFA for selecting Qatar as 2022 World Cup host before first demanding assurances about “fundamental human and labor rights of migrant construction workers, including the abolition of the kafala system.”
The union, which represents 1.1 million workers in the Netherlands and overseas, filed the lawsuit on behalf of a Bangladeshi man who worked in Qatar.
He was fired before the end of his contract and ended up in debt in his home country due to recruitment fees…
…[A] victory could have encouraged hundreds of thousands of other blue-collar workers to file legal claims against FIFA.
FIFA hailed the Swiss court’s decision, saying it takes working conditions and human rights issues in Qatar “very seriously.”…
…“We regret this decision very much, because it leaves migrant workers out in the cold,” [declared FNV]…