Foreign laborer sacked in Qatar after talking to UN delegation

A Nepalese construction worker has been dismissed from his job in Qatar a day after he spoke to a UN delegation about labor conditions in the Persian Gulf country which is gearing up to host the 2022 World Cup.

The 29-year-old worker was fired after he talked to a six-strong delegation from UN's International Labor Organization (ILO), which was visiting a labor camp in Qatar to investigate the working conditions in the country, about unpaid wages and employers illegally holding his passport, informed sources told AFP.

The incident occurred in March 2016, but the case could only be reported now due to the sensitivities regarding the issue.

The Nepalese national was also handed a one-way ticket home to Nepal by bosses, but he never got on the plane, because he was subsequently jailed for two weeks due to losing his work sponsor.

The man was not working on a World Cup project, but his case was highlighted as the key sports event has shed light on labor conditions in the Persian Gulf kingdom.

The Nepalese laborer’s case was cleared in early 2017 and he chose to stay in Qatar, working for a new employer and earning around $438 per month - an average salary for a laborer in Qatar.

The Qatari government has not provided any response to several inquiries about the issue.

The timing of the dismissal "indicates it was a retaliatory act by his employer," officials at the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) say.

"This is a violation under international labor standards and contradicts the commitments Qatar has repeatedly made before the ILO," said ITUC head Sharan Burrow.

The ILO has put the issue on the agenda of the meeting of its governing body in two months, when it discusses an investigation into allegations of forced labor by Qatar.

"The ILO has been following closely this case and continues to do so with a view to ensuring that the rights of this Nepalese worker are fully respected and protected," Corinne Vargha, the director of the ILO's international labour standards department, said in a statement.

The case of the Nepalese national was raised in a previous meeting of the ILO governing body in March 2017 as part of a complaint against Qatar for its alleged violation of two ratified ILO international conventions, including the Forced Labour Convention and the Labour Inspection Convention.

"The complaint will be further discussed by the Governing Body at its November 2017 session," Vargha pointed out.

Following the planned meeting, the ILO may launch a formal investigation into treatment of migrant workers in Qatar.

In December 2016, the Qatari government replaced the country’s notorious "kafala" sponsorship system, which forced foreign workers to seek their employer's consent to change jobs or leave the country - a practice which rights groups say leaves workers open to exploitation.

The new law makes it easier for migrants to change jobs and leave the oil-rich Persian Gulf state - where many of them have been recruited to build soccer stadiums ahead of the 2022 FIFA World Cup.

Despite the reforms, activists say Qatar still refuses to allow scores of migrants from countries including India, Nepal and Bangladesh to return home.

Trade unionists and activists say migrant workers still require an exit permit from the government and more than a quarter of permit requests made by migrants have been denied since the reforms were introduced.

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