human rights Archives

Video

Video from ITUC on two Nepalis leaving Qatar

Here’s a video posted by the International Trade Union Confederation of two Nepalis who have returned to their homes after souring on working in Qatar. One, an electrician, tells the ITUC that “mostly…

2 min

Facing growing criticism, Qatar announces plans to re-evaluate sponsorship system rules

For the third time in a little more than a year, Qatar has said it will revisit its restrictive sponsorship system rules. QNA reports that during its weekly meeting yesterday,…

2 min

GCC countries say they will honor $400 minimum monthly salary for Filipina maids

Both the UAE and Saudi Arabia have acquiesced to requests from the Philippines government to pay domestic workers a minimum monthly salary of QR1460, or $400, media reports state. In…

1 min

Philippines releases new ‘safe to work’ list – Qatar doesn’t make the cut

The Philippines government has issued a revised list of ‘safe to work’ countries for its nationals, but Qatar, home to some quarter-million Filipino expats, has not made the cut. Despite the high…

1 min

Labor unions file complaint against Qatar, continue to push workers’ rights ahead of 2022

Asserting that Qatar’s refusal to allow workers to unionize is due to a high number of workplace deaths in violation of global standards, international trade unions continue to push the…

2 min

News

UAE announces new cybercrime law that threatens jail time for online dissent

In a sweeping new cybercrime law issued in the UAE yesterday, criticizing the country’s rulers or institutions online can now cost a resident three years in jail and/or deportation. Those…

1 min

Qatar proposes GCC ban on runaway maids

Qatar proposes GCC ban on runaway maids Qatar, which is leading a GCC panel to create a uniform recruitment policy and job contract for domestic workers, has proposed a regional ban on runaway maids,…

2 min

Labor Ministry sees drop in expat complaints, but courts report rise in runaway worker cases

Though expats filed fewer complaints with the Ministry of Labor in 2011, Doha courts saw a sharp uptick in runaway worker cases last year, according to local media reports. Some…

2 min

Official: Qatar considers scrapping much-decried sponsorship system (again)

After shelving plans last year to reevaluate its sponsorship system, Qatar appears to be picking up the issue once again, a Labor Ministry official has said. Under the current “kafala”…

human rights