Human rights campaigners have called on Fifa to prevent the “systematic and structural” abuse of Qatar’s private security workers ahead of this winter’s World Cup finals.
A 73-page Amnesty International report claims that security guards working on preparations for the World Cup have been heavily fined for “misdemeanours”, including taking a toilet break and wearing incorrect uniform.
Amnesty interviewed 34 current or former employees, who worked in the security sector in Qatar between April 2021 and February 2022, who allege in the document, They Think That We’re Machines, that they were forced to work without days off.
Many of the guards, all of whom were migrant workers at eight private firms in Qatar, claim to have been made to work 12 hours per day, seven days per week. One claims he worked for three years without a day off.
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Emmanuel, a security guard until late 2021, said: “They use those eight hours to mistreat and humiliate you. If you want to go to the toilet you have to call your supervisor. You can call him at 9am and he comes only at 10am. You cannot leave your location. In case of any mistake [the client] gives huge penalties.”
Nathan, who started work for another security company in early 2020, claimed he was fined about £100 – half his basic monthly salary – for not tucking his shirt in properly after he had visited the toilet. On average, fines could range from one to 13 days’ basic pay, it is alleged.
Security guards also claim to have been forced to work in intense heat without adequate water or shelter.
The eight security companies worked across World Cup infrastructure projects, including stadiums, hotels and transport systems, as well as government ministries. The abuses are also linked to the Club World Cup, which Chelsea won in February.
Stephen Cockburn, Amnesty International’s Head of Economic and Social Justice, said: “Despite the progress Qatar has made in recent years, our research suggests that abuses in the private security sector – which will be increasingly in demand during the World Cup – remain systematic and structural.”
Fifa has also been accused of being slow to respond to abuses of workers building the World Cup.
A Fifa spokesperson told i: “ Fifa is steadfast in its commitment to ensure respect for internationally recognised human rights, in accordance with Fifa’s Human Rights Policy and the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights. Fifa does not accept any abuse of workers.
“To that end, a robust system of pre- and post-contracting audits and enforcement has been put in place… for both construction sites and companies providing services for Fifa competitions hosted in Qatar.”
The spokesperson added: “Fifa and the other tournament organisers are currently focusing on the roll-out of the audit and inspection programme to enforce compliance with the SC’s Workers’ Welfare Standards for more than 150 hotels in the country, as well as on pre-contract audits for the other service companies deployed at the Fifa World Cup.
“This includes security companies who will be deployed on Fifa World Cup sites, as well as companies providing security services for hotels and other companies linked to the World Cup. We see a good level of commitment and collaboration by many service companies and the programme has already now had tangible benefits for thousands of workers.
“At the same time, we refuse to work with companies who fail to show commitment to live up to the Fifa World Cup standards and do not shy away from taking strong measures against such companies in collaboration with the Ministry of Labour.
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“Fifa has provided detailed information about the cases in Amnesty International’s report and the corrective measures that have been applied with the companies involved.”
A Supreme Committe statement read: “The scale of the SC’s programme, which is unique even by international standards, will always have contractors attempting to beat the system, regardless of stringent regulations or monitoring. We are committed to addressing and rectifying any breach of our Standards through our enforcement mechanisms, and where appropriate, doing so collaboratively with contractors and stakeholders.
“The SC takes every measure possible to ensure that workers on our projects are protected and their rights are upheld. Since embarking on the Workers’ Welfare programme, the SC has developed a close working relationship with the MoL – a key element of the WWD’s enforcement measures.
“We remain committed to ensuring the health, safety and security of workers involved in official FIFA projects and encourage anyone facing challenges with their employers to contact the SC’s own grievance hotline or contact the Ministry of Labour for support.”
No helmets, no water and ‘outrageous’ working conditions
By Katherine Lucas, i sports journalist
In a harrowing account of the conditions experienced by migrant workers, one whistleblower has told i of sexual abuse of female staff, inadequate checks on the ages of workers, and inadequate safety equipment.
The photo below shows a worker being lifted into the air in the excavator bucket of a construction vehicle without use of proper protective equipment and no helmet or ladder.
The whistleblower told i that in the summer of 2019 he was not allowed to provide two migrant workers cleaning a swimming pool with bottles of Evian water. A manager “handed back the two bottles and said ‘they can’t accept these'”, later giving them bottles of desalinated water – which is sea water treated for human consumption. “That’s what the migrants drink.”
It is also alleged that migrant workers can be dismissed from crowded areas, such as Doha’s Souq Waqif marketplace, to make space for so-called “higher-tier” social groups, including Qataris and Westerners.
Another account described street preachers spitting water at LGBT+ people as a supposed “cure”.
In December, an i investigation reported that with a year to go until the World Cup, new labour laws were not being fully enforced, leading to widespread abuse of workers. Fifa said that the tournament had “contributed significantly to an improvement of labour conditions” and added that world football’s governing body would conduct thorough audits on companies involved in any activity relating to the World Cup.
“We would respectfully suggest that there has, in the last five years, been real and substantive progress in this area, precisely because of the spotlight that has been shone on these matters because of the Fifa World Cup being staged in Qatar,” a statement read.
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There are approximately two million migrant workers in Qatar, mostly from Africa and Asia, and not all are enlisted in World Cup projects.
Outside of construction, many are domestic workers, employed in the homes of the middle classes, or work in transport, security and the hospitality industry.
Yet in spite of intense international pressure on Qatar’s government, there is a reluctance for workers to come forward following the high-profile cases of two whistleblowers.
Abdullah Ibhais, a former deputy communications director on the World Cup Supreme Committee, was recently sentenced to three years in prison on charges of bribery and misuse of funds, which he claims were concocted in response to his revelations about the treatment of workers.
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Last year, the blogger Malcom Bidali was “forcibly disappeared” after detailing workers’ 11-hour days in the extreme heat without proper breaks, four days off a month, and unpaid wages. He was tricked into revealing his identity online and later deported.
Since 2017, Qatar’s government has been working with the International Labour Organisation (ILO) to clamp down on the exploitation of workers. The “kafala” system which legally bound employees to their employers and led to widespread abuse has also been dismantled.
There is yet to be a full investigation into the thousands of deaths of migrant workers that have occurred in the decade since Fifa awarded the country the World Cup.
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