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Mohammad: Protect rights of workers
Gulf News, 8 Nov. 2006

All necessary measures must be taken to ensure the rights of expatriate workers are protected and their living and working conditions are significantly improved, His Highness Shaikh Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai ordered authorities yesterday.full article w/reader comments

Commentary

The article details a new directive, which if implemented and enforced would go a long way toward improving conditions for laborers and other workers in the UAE. In this sense it bears examining closely what the directive asserts and what follow-up action is taken. From the article, the following initiatives can be highlighted as having particular relevance to laborers:

1. protection of worker rights
   
2. significant improvement of worker's living and working conditions
   
3. implementation of an effective mechanism to enforce due compensation to workers whose salaries have been withheld for more than two months
   
4. allowing of workers to switch jobs with no obstacles, provided UAE and Ministry of Labor conditions are met
   
5. drawing up of a comprehensive plan to include a timeline for implementation
   
6. creation of a specialized court for dealing with labor complaints and cases of mistreatment
   
7. Setting up of a special inspection unit comprising 2000 inspectors to monitor labor accommodations and workplaces
   
8. Urgent investigation of labor supply companies to assure that they comply with the laws and refrain from abusing workers' rights

The article adds,

"The UAE will not tolerate any unjust treatment of workers or compromise of their dignity and basic human rights," he warned.

For the sake of future reference, also present at the meeting to discuss labor issues were:

• Sheikh Hamdan Bin Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum
  
• Shaikh Maktoum Bin Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum
  
• Mohammad Abdullah Al Gergawi

A non-governmental human rights agency could hardly have drafted a more comprehensive list of demands that would help to significantly improve the rights and conditions of workers. Missing, however, is any call for higher pay or a minimum wage. What remains to be seen is how many of the demands of the Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai are met in practice, if any.

Go to latest In the News post or In Support of UAE Laborers home.