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Balfour Beatty and Interserve accused of migrant worker labour abuses in Qatar
Source: The Guardian
Balfour Beatty and Interserve accused of migrant worker labour abuses in Qatar
UK construction firms defend working practices in response to claims
of reduced wages and withholding labourers’ passports
Pete Pattisson in Doha
Wednesday 13 April 2016 12.32 BST
Balfour Beatty and Interserve, two of the UK’s largest construction companies, have been accused of a raft of labour abuses by migrant workers employed on large-scale projects operated by companies that the firms co-own in Qatar.
Labourers on construction sites operated by BK Gulf, co-owned by Balfour Beatty, and Gulf Contracting Company (GCC), co-owned by Interserve, allege that they have been exploited and mistreated by labour supply companies hired by the firms to furnish construction sites in Doha with cheap manual workers.
The alleged abuses include erratic or reduced payment of wages, passport confiscation, workers entering employment with high levels of debt bondage, and pay levels below those agreed when workers were recruited in their home countries. The workers spoke of a culture of fear and intimidation, with threats of arrest or deportation if they stepped out of line.
The Guardian spoke to more than a dozen migrant workers, all of whom requested to remain anonymous due to fears of losing their jobs.
One labourer, employed by a supply company but working for GCC, which is 49% owned by Interserve, said he repeatedly asked his employer to let him leave Qatar after his salary was cut by 20%, but he was forced to stay. “I went to the (manager) and said, ‘I will give you the money for my plane ticket. Send me home.’ But he said, ‘Until and unless the contract finishes … you can’t go.’”
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UK construction firms defend working practices in response to claims
of reduced wages and withholding labourers’ passports
Pete Pattisson in Doha
Wednesday 13 April 2016 12.32 BST
Balfour Beatty and Interserve, two of the UK’s largest construction companies, have been accused of a raft of labour abuses by migrant workers employed on large-scale projects operated by companies that the firms co-own in Qatar.
Labourers on construction sites operated by BK Gulf, co-owned by Balfour Beatty, and Gulf Contracting Company (GCC), co-owned by Interserve, allege that they have been exploited and mistreated by labour supply companies hired by the firms to furnish construction sites in Doha with cheap manual workers.
The alleged abuses include erratic or reduced payment of wages, passport confiscation, workers entering employment with high levels of debt bondage, and pay levels below those agreed when workers were recruited in their home countries. The workers spoke of a culture of fear and intimidation, with threats of arrest or deportation if they stepped out of line.
The Guardian spoke to more than a dozen migrant workers, all of whom requested to remain anonymous due to fears of losing their jobs.
One labourer, employed by a supply company but working for GCC, which is 49% owned by Interserve, said he repeatedly asked his employer to let him leave Qatar after his salary was cut by 20%, but he was forced to stay. “I went to the (manager) and said, ‘I will give you the money for my plane ticket. Send me home.’ But he said, ‘Until and unless the contract finishes … you can’t go.’”
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Read more: http://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2016/apr/13/balfour-beatty-interserve-accused-migrant-worker-labour-abuses-qatar