Saudi Arabia has an alarming level of child labor, discrimination and forced labor, a new report released by the International Trade Union Confederation revealed.
The revelations are staggering and the confederation said that Saudi Arabia “is in violation of all core labor standards.”
The report was to be delivered to the World Trade Organization’s (WTO) review of the ultra-conservative Gulf kingdom on Wednesday.
Sharan Burrow, General Secretary of the ITUC, said in a statement that there is not a single trade union in Saudi Arabia, as “the law does not allow them to exist.
“Employees are only allowed to organise so-called “workers’ committees” which must include the participation of the government and the employer. Unions, collective bargaining, strikes, even public demonstrations are banned.
“Despite the strike ban, some unauthorized strikes do take place, In October last year, 16 Chinese workers were arrested for participating in a strike involving at least 100 Chinese workers in a rail construction project. The strikers demanded a salary increase and improved working and living conditions,” said Burrow.
Workers advocate for the Gulf region and blogger/activist Mohamed Abdulaziz told Bikyamasr.com via telephone in Beirut that “this is not surprising to those of us who have followed labor in Saudi Arabia. Maybe the international community will step up.”
The report continues to condemn the open discrimination of women in the workforce. It said that women often need permission from their male “guardian” just to take a job.
“Women who do work, earn 84 percent less than men in similar roles,” the report stated.
The report said that the 8.3 migrant workers in the country, and even more so the 1.5 female domestic workers, “bear the brunt of abuse, with many working in slavery like conditions.”
“Thousands of migrant workers are the victims of torture, work long hours, live in confined conditions and, in general, are deprived of their basic freedoms. The Saudi authorities have repeatedly failed to address the issue and redress extreme abuses which remain unpunished,” continued Burrow.
“Saudi Arabia’s wealth and status is built on the backs of workers who face ritual beatings, torture and are denied their basic freedoms. It’s time to clean up the Saudi economy and give all workers the right to organise, collectively bargain and strike,” she added.
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