The Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs is following up on all complaints regarding labour conditions and taking legal action in case of violations, according to an official
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A delegation from an international labour federation arrived in Qatar yesterday to inspect the situation of migrant workers in the 2022 football World Cup host.
The 18-member team from the Building and Wood Worker’s International federation will visit construction sites in the state and report on the situation, according to the AFP news agency.
“This mission is to inspect the conditions of work in the construction sites,” said Gilles Letort, from the CGT French union upon arrival.
He said the visit had been prepared a year ago.
“We will inspect, note, and afterwards, try to create awareness and act to improve the situation of workers based on our findings,” he added.
Qatar has embarked on a multi-billion-dollar construction programme to prepare to host the 2022 football World Cup.
Meanwhile, Hussain al-Mulla, undersecretary in the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs, has pointed to a political conspiracy behind the recent allegations on the condition of Nepalese and other labourers in Qatar, according to local Arabic daily Arrayah.
A report published by Britain’s Guardian newspaper recently claimed that thousands of Nepalese workers were enduring labour abuse.
Al-Mulla described the allegations as “malicious and apocryphal” and called upon officials from the International Labour Organisation (ILO) to investigate the charges. He said the allegations were based on false reports, adding that some people in the organisation who wanted to spoil the reputation of Qatar could be behind them, according to the Arrayah report.
Al-Mulla said that some of the labour laws had been amended in accordance with the requirements of staging the World Cup. He said the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs was following up on all complaints regarding labour conditions and taking legal action in case of violations.
The official stressed that Qatar was keen to preserve workers’ rights and provide them with suitable accommodation, security and safety.
Qatar has already appointed an international law firm to investigate the allegations.
Necessary steps will be taken to counter the allegations and reveal those behind them, according to the Arrayah report.
Highlighting workers’ rights in Qatar, al-Mulla pointed out that all labourers in Qatar were covered by the health insurance system. He also stressed that the authorities monitored various labour-related issues, including payment of salaries and safety aspects and classified companies based on such criteria.