The exploitation of workers continues in Qatar despite World Cup organizers saying they had introduced measures since 2014 to protect health and safety.
As part of its investigation into the treatment of migrant workers in Qatar’s private security sector, Amnesty International disclosed its new report They think that we’re machines, which documented the experiences of 34 current or former employees of eight private security companies in Qatar.
The findings of the investigation are undeniable: security guards are working in conditions that amount to forced labor, including on projects linked to the 2022 FIFA World Cup. And despite the labor reforms of the kafala sponsorship system, abuses in this sector remain systemic and structural.
In the report, the guards, all migrant workers, described routinely working 12 hours a day, seven days a week – often for months or even years without a day off.
Most said their employers refused to respect the weekly rest day which is required by Qatari law, and workers who took their day off anyway faced being punished with arbitrary wage deductions. One man described his first year in Qatar as ‘survival of the fittest’.
Amnesty concluded that neither FIFA nor the Supreme Committee conducted adequate due diligence before contracting the security companies, and they compounded this failing by not identifying and addressing abuses in a timely manner.
The world football’s governing body agreed to meet with Amnesty and in FIFA’s response dated February 22, declared that it does not accept any abuse of workers by companies involved in the preparation and delivery of the World Cup.
Following inspections during the Club World Cup and Arab Cup, contractors that failed to comply with the required standards were identified and the issues found were addressed on the spot.
Although the government holds the ultimate responsibility for reforms, activist are calling on the Federation Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) and the event’s commercial sponsors, including Coke and Adidas, to put pressure on the government to act.
