World Cup 2022: Are Qatar's labour reforms being ignored in the West?

Since Qatar won the bid to host the 2022 FIFA World Cup more than a decade ago, a sceptical Western gaze has barely lifted from the Arab Gulf state, questioning its fundamental right to organize global sporting events. Beyond the West, however, the reaction to Qatar 2022 is more nuanced and much less polemical. 

In the Western critical narrative, three specific issues have been highlighted in Qatar:  migrant labour conditions, restrictions on same-sex relations, and allegations of corruption surrounding the FIFA bid. From the get-go, the Qatari government's policy has been to take these issues and allegations seriously.

Qatar, like most Arab states outlaws same-sex relations, but the Qatari government's official line is that "everyone is welcome" and safe at the world cup, including LGBTQ+ folk and fans of all backgrounds. Qatar has implicitly signalled that these laws are not strictly enforced but it has stressed it was not going to readily adopt the Western liberal perspective or meet all demands by LGBTQ+ rights activists calling for a boycott of the event, similar to what happened in the 2018 World Cup in Russia, which arguably enforces much stricter anti-gay laws.  The Qatari line is: We will not change our religion for a 28-day football event.

"In the Western critical narrative, three specific issues have been highlighted in Qatar: Poor migrant labour rights, restrictions on same-sex relations, and allegations of corruption surrounding the FIFA bid. From the get-go, the Qatari government's policy has been to take these issues and allegations seriously"

On allegations related to bidding practices, Qatar has engaged with investigations that eventually cleared it from wrongdoing and it has denied all accusations of corruption. While questions remain about alleged practices at the football governing body, the Qataris claim the spotlight has been unfairly focused on their country rather than seen a systematic problem in the world football governing body. 

Labour rights

But it is labour issues that Qatar says it has made the most progress on but feels that has not been acknowledged enough by its detractors. In its final pre-tournament briefing on migrant workers' conditions in Qatar, Amnesty International, one of the leading organizations pushing for labour reform in the Gulf state, said Qatar's labour reforms are unfinished and compensation is still owed to migrant workers who died or were injured while working in Qatar.

However, Amnesty acknowledged that "Qatar's overhaul of its labour system since 2017 has led to some noticeable improvements for the country’s two million migrant workers" yet criticized "a lack of effective implementation and enforcement" that continues to undermine their impact on migrant workers.  

Amnesty also acknowledged the importance of Qatar's abolishment of the kafala system: "Crucial changes to the kafala system—which made workers entirely dependent on their employer—mean the vast majority of migrant workers are now legally able to leave the country and change jobs without permission," Amnesty said. However, Amnesty added, "migrant workers still risk being arrested or deported if their employers cancel their visas, fail to renew their residence permit or report them as having 'absconded' from their jobs." 

Doha has consistently acknowledged these issues and accepted that much more needed to be done. But it has also hit back at what it says inaccurate assessments that "undermine" its good faith and ignore progress made. Qatar has said its reforms were developed with the support of international partners, such as "the UN International Labour Organisation, NGOs, and trade unions…based on trust, hard work, and a shared understanding of our goals." 

Setting the record straight

Further defending its record, the Qatari Ministry of Labour said: "We have…worked with labour-sending countries to tackle exploitative practices that occur before workers arrive in Qatar. The progress made by Qatar is irrefutable. The Workers' Support and Insurance Fund, established by the government to provide payments owed to workers, has disbursed 110 million pounds in the past two years alone. During this decade-long process we have engaged openly with NGOs that have been consistently critical of Qatar." 

"The progress made by Qatar is irrefutable. The Workers' Support and Insurance Fund, established by the government to provide payments owed to workers, has disbursed 110 million pounds in the past two years alone. During this decade-long process we have engaged openly with NGOs that have been consistently critical of Qatar"

UN and EU affiliated bodies themselves have acknowledged the progress made in Qatar, which has overtaken many countries in the region on labour reforms in both legislation and enforcement.  An annual EU report about "Human rights and democracy in the world 2021" published in April 2022 praised the reforms which Qatar had made, like cancelling the Kafala system, and setting a minimum wage. 

Historical reforms

The European report said that foreign workers represent 88% of the country's population, and reforming the Labour Law made Qatar the first state in the Arab Gulf region which allowed workers to change their employment before the end of their contracts, without needing to obtain agreement from the employer. Likewise it was the second Gulf State to set a minimum wage. 

In March 2021, Qatar started to apply a minimum wage limit which was 1,000 riyals ($275) per month, for all employees in all sectors, including domestic workers. Employers also have to pay housing and food allowances, or provide suitable living quarters and meals. 

The chief of the UN Migration Mission to Qatar, Iman Younes Ereiqat, told The New Arab's sister Arabic publication Al-Araby Al-Jadeed (AAJ) that "Qatar is the first country in the region to implement a non-discriminatory minimum wage, which is part of a series of historical reforms to the country's labour laws." 

Qatari authorities have also said they have monitored thousands of complaints and investigated and resolved them. The Qatari Ministry of Labour said it received about 35,000 complaints between October 2021 and October 2022, through the electronic complaints platform it set up online, and 227 anonymous complaints through a whistle-blower channel during the same period. 

In a comprehensive bulletin reviewed by AAJ, the ministry indicated that it had settled about 66.5 percent and escalated about 30.7 percent, to the dispute settlement committees, while 2.8 percent were still under review. The ministry said that the main reasons for the complaints were non-payment of wages and end-of-service benefits and the failure to grant or pay annual leave. It indicated that in 84 percent of the cases, courts ruled in favour of the workers. 

"Qatar, starting in 2018, had introduced many reforms to its labour policies, including cancelling the no-objection certificate (NOC) for changing employers, setting a minimum wage, and cancelling the exit permit"

A "constructive and objective approach"

The Head of the UN Migration Mission to Qatar, Iman Younis Erekat, affirmed that a constructive and objective approach in dealing with migrant workers in Qatar had been adopted. She said in an interview with AAJ that Qatar, starting in 2018, had introduced many reforms to its labour policies, including cancelling the no-objection certificate (NOC) for changing employers, setting a minimum wage, and cancelling the exit permit. She noted that labour market studies in Qatar proved that more than 280,000 workers benefited from the additions which followed the adoption of a minimum wage. 

All of these reforms are at the heart of the abolition of the sponsorship system that exists in the Arab region in general, which over the years has been the biggest obstacle to migrant workers' enjoyment of their basic rights, according to Erekat. The UN official considered that the vision of the State of Qatar focuses on harmonising national legislation with international standards as a first and essential step to guarantee the rights of migrant workers on its territory. 

But she pointed out that despite the important reforms that had been coming into effect gradually starting in 2018, changing entrenched systems requires a great deal of time and effort. She added: "There are many points that must be worked on together to be developped, and this is natural, and the most prominent of these is the issue of workers' wages and access to justice and fairness." 

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She pointed to an important issue: the fact that some workers fell victim to the greed of employers, or the bankruptcy of the companies they worked for, which meant these workers would suffer from difficulties collecting what they were owed, and she called for additional work to ensure the implementation of the new legislation and to enable and protect workers from reprisals by some [vengeful] employers. 

 "We all, as governmental institutions, the UN system, civil society, and the media, must work hand in hand to preserve this reformative momentum that is unique to the State of Qatar at the regional level," Erekat said 

Protection from heat stress 

Last summer was the second summer in which legislation protecting workers from heat stress was applied, and the ministerial decree of 2021 increased the period it is prohibited to work outside from 426 hours to 586 hours, which is over three and a half months, from the first of June to 15 September, between 10 a.m. and 3:30 p.m. 

"We all, as governmental institutions, the UN system, civil society, and the media, must work hand in hand to preserve this reformative momentum that is unique to the State of Qatar at the regional level"

In July 2022, the Ministry of Labour published a decree clarifying that bicycle delivery workers are also protected by this legislation and also bans any motorcycle delivery during the hours work is prohibited. 

The Ministry carried out a targeted inspection campaign in the summer of 2022, focusing on construction work sites, the agricultural sector, delivery companies and the industrial sector, which resulted in the closure of 463 work sites, most of which were under construction, for non-compliance with legislation, and the number of workers who visited Qatar Red Crescent clinics suffering from heat-related disorders was 351 workers, compared to 620 in 2021. 

The Ministry attributed this decrease to the preventive measures in the new legislation, and to both the awareness and inspection campaigns, pointing out that the Ministry of Labour and the International Labour Organisation (ILO) will organise an international conference in Qatar on occupational heat stress in early 2023. 

The Ministry explained that in light of the influx of temporary workers and the increase in activity during the FIFA World Cup, which kicks off in Qatar on November 20, actions will be taken by the Ministry of Labour and the ILO in coordination with the Supreme Committee for Delivery and Legacy and others, to ensure compliance with Qatari law, and dedicated labour inspection campaigns will be organised. 

Reforms having "positive impact"

According to an ILO report, which was issued in early November, 86 percent of workers confirmed that the reforms had had a positive impact on their lives, according to a survey conducted in May and June 2022 which included 1,036 low-paid workers of multiple nationalities who resided in shared accommodation and who worked in various economic sectors. Another survey carried out by the ILO stated that 98 percent of those surveyed had received their wages on time. 

It's worth noting that the ILO has moved its regional HQ to Doha in recognition of such progress. Yet, according to Qatari officials, the feeling in Doha is that when labour organizations and international bodies have engaged positively and acknowledged the huge progress made, the narrative in the European press has paid little to no attention to this positive story. Instead, a narrative has been constructed around Qatar's alleged inherent unsuitability to host the world cup, with no adequate space given to the Qatari side of the story, in what Qatari commentators are labelling a smear campaign.

"The feeling in Qatar is that when labour organizations and international bodies have engaged positively and acknowledged the huge progress made, the narrative in the European press, especially in the UK, has paid little to no attention to this positive story"

As a result of this alleged anti-Qatar campaign, Qataris say that what is being celebrated in Qatar, the Arab and Muslim worlds, and the Global South as the first 'Arab World Cup', is being treated as a toxic event in a hypocritical West, where no Qatari, Arab, or Muslim voice is heard, and no acknowledgement of progress or success is accepted. 

Western commentators themselves are starting to notice this. The Economist magazine wrote, in an article titled,  In defence of Qatar's hosting of the World Cup: "At best, Western criticism of the decision to award the games to Qatar fails to distinguish between truly repugnant regimes and merely flawed ones. At worst, it smacks of blind prejudice. A lot of the indignant pundits sound as if they simply do not like Muslims or rich people." 

This is an edited translation of a series of articles from our Arabic edition with additional background. 

The first was published on 1/11/22 and you can read it here.

The second was published on 07/11/22 and you can read it here.