By Andrew Warshaw
September 26 – The International Trade Union Confederation, which claims to represent 175 million workers worldwide, says the safety of those involved in building Qatar’s infrastructure for the 2022 World Cup is “vastly more serious” than the global emphasis on whether to stage the tournament in summer or winter. Concerns for the welfare of players and spectators have led to FIFA considering moving 2022 from the heat of the Gulf summer, a move expected to be rubber-stamped next week by its 22-member executive committee.
ITUC general secretary Sharan Burrow says the Brussels-based union movement fully shares such concerns but makes the astonishing claim that construction workers regularly lose their lives in Qatar and are the ones who are most likely to suffer as a result of the World Cup.
“People should not have to pay with their lives for the World Cup to be a sporting and commercial success,” Burrow said in a statement that has been forwarded in a letter to FIFA president Sepp Blatter.
“1.2 million migrant workers in Qatar are forced to work in extremely high temperatures. Several hundred migrant construction workers die each year in Qatar, working in intolerable conditions. The lack of protection and rights causes an average of at least one death every day.”
The Qatar 2022 supreme committee insists the Gulf state has made huge strides in improving the conditions of work for migrant workers.
But according to the ITUC, a record 32 Nepalese migrant workers died in the searing heat of Qatar in July alone. The organisation did not say where its information came from but added: “Qatar has said that between 500,000 and 1 million additional workers will be required for world cup infrastructure – this is a workforce increase of more than 30% and if there is no reform, we would expect a similar percentage increase in fatalities.”
A number of ITUC supporters were briefly detained by authorities when protesting outside the FIFA Congress in Mauritius in May and the movement is again urging FIFA not to ignore the workers’ plight.
“FIFA needs to send a very strong and clear message to Qatar that it will not allow the World Cup to be delivered on the back of a system of modern slavery that is the reality for hundreds of thousands of migrant workers there today.
“Without the necessary changes, more workers will die building the World Cup facilities than players will take to the field in the 2022 World Cup.”
For their part, the Qataris have already put in place a Workers Charter that recognises the issues. The ITUC make no reference to the charter and whether they believe it goes far enough.
A recent Qatari press release on the Al Wakrah stadium development, included a section on the Workers Charter, saying: “Construction work carried out on Al Wakrah Stadium will be guided by the recently launched ‘Workers Charter.’ The Qatar 2022 Supreme Committee firmly believes that all workers engaged on its projects have a right to be treated in a manner that ensures at all times their wellbeing, health, safety and security.
“The committee affirms that all contractors and sub-contractors engaged in the delivery of its projects will comply with the principles set out in this charter as well as all relevant Qatari laws. The principles of the charter will be robustly and effectively monitored and enforced by the committee for the benefit of allworkers.
“Compliance with the Workers Charter and all relevant Qatari laws is a pre-requisite for the selection and retention by the Qatar 2022 Supreme Committee of its contractors and sub-contractors.”
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