Qatar
The ITUC does not have an affiliate in Qatar.
Qatar has not ratified either Convention No. 87 on Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise (1948) or Convention No. 98 on the Right to Organise and Collective Bargaining (1949).
Legal
Freedom of association / Right to organise
Freedom of association
The right to freedom of association is recognised by law but strictly regulated.
Anti-Union discrimination
The law does not specifically protect workers from anti-union discrimination.
Barriers to the establishment of organisations
- Excessive representativity or minimum number of members required for the establishment of a union
- Each of the General Committees, which together make up the General Union of Workers of Quatar, must have a minimum of 100 members.
- Restrictions on trade unions’ right to establish branches, federation and confederation or to affiliate with national and international organisations
- Under article 123 of Labour Law No. 14, "The General Union of the workers of Qatar may, after approval of the Ministry, join any Arab or International Organizations working in the field of the Workers Organizations.”
Restrictions on workers’ right to form and join organisations of their own choosing
- Single trade union system imposed by law and/or a system banning or limiting organising at a certain level (enterprise, industry and/or sector, regional and/or territorial, national)
- The country’s Labour Code allows for only one trade union: the General Union of Workers of Qatar, made up of the General Committees covering workers in different trades or industries.
- Restrictions on workers’ right to join the trade union of their choosing imposed by law (i.e. obligation to join a trade union of a certain level e.g. enterprise, industry and/or sector, regional and /or territorial national)
- Under article 116 of Labour Law No.14, “More than one committee in the establishment may not be formed. The workers committees in the establishments engaged in one trade or industry or similar or interrelated trades or industries are entitled to form a general committee from amongst themselves to be named the General Committee for the Workers of Trade or Industry. The general committees of the workers of the various trades and industries may form a general union to be named the "General Union of the Workers of Qatar".”
Restrictions on trade unions’ right to organise their administration
- Restrictions on the right to freely draw up their constitutions and rules
- Decree No. 10/2006 provides that the statutes of labour organizations (committees) shall conform to the annexed model statute.
- Restrictions on the right to elect representatives and self-administer in full freedom
- Section 4 of the model statute provides that union members shall be Qatari, and that non-Qatari workers, while they may affiliate on condition that they are in possession of work permits and have worked in the country for at least five years, shall not have the right to vote, nominate candidates or attend general assemblies but only to select a representative to express their point of view to the board.
- Restrictions on the right to freely organise activities and formulate programmes
- Workers' organisations are prohibited from engaging in any political activity, from distributing materials that insult the state or the government, from entering into financial speculations, and from accepting gifts without the approval of the Ministry.
- Administrative authorities’ power to unilaterally dissolve, suspend or de-register trade union organisations
- The Minister may dissolve any workers\' organisation that carries out activities that are prohibited by the Labour Law.
Categories of workers prohibited or limited from forming or joining a union, or from holding a union office
- Others categories
- Workers employed at sea as well as casual workers are not allowed to organise.
- Other civil servants and public employees
- Government employees are not allowed to organise.
- Non-national or migrant workers
- Minimum wage: Law No. 17 of 2020 introduced a non-discriminatory minimum wage for the first time in Qatar. It also requires employers to provide decent food and accommodation to workers. The Law, which came into force in March 2021, applies to all workers regardless of their nationality and the sector in which they work, including domestic work and other sectors not covered by the Labour Law. The accompanying Ministerial Decision No. 25 of 2020 stipulates a minimum basic wage of 1,000 riyals (USD275), and minimum allowances for food and accommodation, of 300 riyals (USD82) and 500 riyals (USD137), respectively. The Labour Law has been amended to increase the penalties for wage-related violations, from a maximum prison sentence of one month to 12 months, and to increase the maximum fine from 6,000 riyals (USD1,650) to 10,000 riyals (USD2,750). /// Workers’ Support and Insurance Fund: Pursuant to Law No. 17 of 2018, a "Workers' Support and Insurance Fund" was created. It aims at protecting workers from the impact of outstanding or unpaid wages. More specifically, the Fund is tasked with paying the workers’ wages and benefits which are settled by the Labour Dispute Settlment Committees. These committees, which became operational in March 2018, are a judge-led “fast track” labour dispute mechanism aiming at improving workers’ access to justice. /// Ending of the requirement for exit permits: Ministerial Decision No. 95 of 2019 extends the coverage of Law No. 13 of 2018, and grants the right to leave the country temporarily or permanently during their contract period to workers of ministries and other government entities, workers in public institutions, domestic workers, workers employed at sea, workers in agriculture, and workers employed in casual work. A Ministerial Decision ending the requirement for exit permits for workers not covered by the Labour Law was issued by the Minister of the Interior on 16 January 2020. /// Ending of the requirement for no-objection certificates: Law No.19 of 2020, complemented by a new Ministerial Decision No. 51 of 2020, removes the requirement to obtain a no-objection certificate to change jobs for all migrant workers, while Law No.18 of 2020 provides new rules on termination of employment. Workers who are covered by the Labour Law, domestic workers and maritime and agricultural workers are now able to change employer after their probation period, after giving written notice of one or two months, depending on their length of service. /// Establishment of joint committees: Decision No. 21 of 2019 regulating the conditions and procedures for the election of workers’ representatives to joint committees, allows workers in private companies and public bodies with 30 or more employees to elect their representatives. Joint Committees bring together representatives of management and workers into regular communication over workplace issues. This includes topics such as the organisation of work, ways to increase production and development, workers’ training programmes, risk prevention tools, and ways to improve the level of adherence to occupational safety and health rules.
- Agricultural workers
- Workers employed in agriculture and grazing, apart from self-employed persons and those who are permanently employed in the operation or repair of necessary agricultural mechanical appliances, are not allowed to organise.
- Domestic workers
- People performing domestic work, such as drivers, nurses, cooks, gardeners and similar workers are not allowed to organise.
Right to collective bargaining
Right to collective bargaining
The right to collective bargaining is recognised by law but strictly regulated.
Barriers to the recognition of collective bargaining agents
- Undue requirements regarding trade unions’ structure, composition and affiliation
- The country’s Labour Code allows for only one trade union: the General Union of Workers of Qatar, made up of the General Committees covering workers in different trades or industries.
Restrictions on the principle of free and voluntary bargaining
- Exclusion of certain matters from the scope of bargaining (e.g. wages, hours)
- The law allows trade unions to carry out collective bargaining but heavily curtails this right by maintaining government control over the rules and procedures for bargaining, including restrictions on the content, scope, duration and interpretation of the agreements.
- Compulsory conciliation and / or binding arbitration procedure in the event of disputes during collective bargaining, other than in essential services
- Article 130 of Labour Law, Law No. 14 provides that "if the mediation of the Department does not lead to the settlement of the dispute within 15 days from the date of the employer's reply, the Department shall submit the dispute to a conciliation committee for its decision thereon.[...]The decision of the committee shall be binding on the two parties to the dispute if the parties had agreed in writing to referring the dispute to the committee before its meeting to decide on the dispute and if there is no such an agreement in this respect the dispute shall be referred to an arbitration committee within fifteen days and the arbitration shall be mandatory for the two parties.”
Restrictions on the scope of application and legal effectiveness of concluded collective agreements
- Restrictions on the duration, scope of application or coverage of collective agreements
- The law allows trade unions to carry out collective bargaining but heavily curtails this right by maintaining government control over the rules and procedures for bargaining, including restrictions on the content, scope, duration and interpretation of the agreements.
Limitations or ban on collective bargaining in certain sectors
- Other civil servants and public employees
- The Labour Law does not apply to "the employees and workers of the Ministries and other governmental organs, public institutions, corporations and companies which are established by Qatar Petroleum by itself or with others, and the workers whose employment affairs are regulated by special laws" (art.3 of Labour Law No. 14).
- Other categories
- The Labour Law does not apply to workers employed at sea, agricultural workers, domestic workers and casual workers (art.3 of Labour Law No. 14).
Right to strike
Right to strike
The right to strike is recognised by law but strictly regulated.
Barriers to lawful strike actions
- Previous authorisation or approval by authorities required to hold a lawful strike
- The Ministry of Labour, in coordination with the Minister of Interior Affairs, must approve the time and place of a strike.
- Obligation to observe an excessive quorum or to obtain an excessive majority in a ballot to call a strike
- In order to call a strike, ¾ of the General Committee of the workers in the trade or the industry must approve of the action.
- Excessively long prior notice / cooling-off period
- Workers\' committees are requested to give the employer a period of not less than two weeks before commencing the strike.
- Compulsory recourse to arbitration, or to long and complex conciliation and mediation procedures prior to strike actions
- A lengthy dispute resolution procedure must be exhausted before a lawful strike can be called.
- Other undue, unreasonable or unjustified prerequisites
- In the private sector, although most workers have the right to strike, they can do so only after the Labour Department of the Ministry of Civil Service has ruled on the dispute, which effectively neutralises the purpose of striking.
Ban or limitations on certain types of strike actions
- Restrictions with respect to the objective of a strike (e.g. industrial disputes, economic and social issues, political, sympathy and solidarity reasons)
Undue interference by authorities or employers during the course of a strike
- Authorities’ or employers’ power to prevent or end a strike by referring the dispute to arbitration
- Section 130 of Labour Law No. 14 imposes a procedure of compulsory arbitration before a strike may be called.
Undermining of the recourse to strike actions or their effectiveness
- Absence of specific protection for workers involved in lawful strike actions (e.g. against dismissal)
- Under the same conditions as for workers in the private sector, employers are authorised to lock out or sack workers.
Limitations or ban on strikes in certain sectors
- Undue restrictions for “public servants”
- Civil servants cannot strike.
- Discretionary determination or excessively long list of “essential services” in which the right to strike is prohibited or severely restricted
- No worker in a public utility, health or security service can strike if it harms the public or causes damage to property. Workers in petroleum- and gas-related industries, seaports and all forms of transportation fall under this category.
- Other limitations (e.g. in EPZs)
- Domestic workers cannot strike.
Other restrictions
- Other restrictions
- The Labour Law does not apply to workers employed at sea, agricultural workers, domestic workers and casual workers (art.3 of Labour Law No. 14).
In practice
Qatar has denied many immigrant workers from India, Nepal and Bangladesh the ability to return home, despite a new law that was approved in December 2016.
Trade unions have denounced the fact that the law has not abolished the kafala system. Workers continue to be dependent on their employer in order to obtain an exit permit. According to the data reported by the State-run Qatar News Agency, the newly established Exit Permit Grievances Committee rejected 213 of 760 requests made up until 15 February 2017, but no reason was provided for the denial of the requests.
A further confirmation of the unchanged nature of working conditions in the Gulf State is the recent episode of a Nepali migrant worker found dead by his brother. Mr Ram Sharan Mandal, aged 40, was ill and asked for permission to leave the state in order to go back to his homeland to receive adequate treatment and assistance. However, the permission was not granted and on 16 April he was overcome by his illness and died.
In October 2016, a law suit was commenced by a Bangladeshi man – the 21 year old Nadim Shariful - against FIFA for allegedly failing to use its influence to ensure basic workers’ rights in the construction sites for the 2022 World Cup. The suit, launched in FIFA’s home city of Zurich, is backed by the largest labour union in the Netherlands, the Dutch Federation of Trade Union (FNV). Mr. Shariful demanded compensation of $11,500 for the $4,000 he paid to a recruiter for a job in Qatar where he then had his passport confiscated and worked for 18 months under unbearably hard conditions.
Unfortunately, Mr. Shariful’s case was not isolated, as international organisations, such as Amnesty International, have denounced the practices of confiscating passports, non-payment of salaries as well as threats at the workplace, which are the rule in the Gulf country getting ready for the World Cup at the expense of exploited migrant workers. Some of them are so desperate that they commit suicide – such as the young Indian worker who hanged himself in the basement of the Convention and Exhibition Center in Doha on 29 September 2016 – whilst some others die of illness, tiredness and malnutrition.
Despite repeated promises, the Government of Qatar continued to drag its feet over reforms to improve migrant workers’ rights. In March 2015 the ILO Governing Body insisted that Qatar had to reform the Kafala (sponsorship) system by November 2015 at the latest. Both workers and employers representatives at the ILO called on Qatar to take immediate action to abolish the system, which enables the extreme exploitation and oppression of migrant workers. They also called for basic labour rights to be adopted, including the right to organise in trade unions.
Since Qatar was awarded the right to host the 2022 FIFA World Cup, it has come under increasing scrutiny over the appalling conditions in which migrant labourers live and work. Workers are tied to their employer of origin under the Kafala system and cannot leave the country without their employers’ permission. Forced to work for long hours in intense heat, migrant workers have been dying at the rate of at least one a day. Despite the shocking death rates and international outcry against the slave-like conditions, FIFA has taken little meaningful action, beyond some improvements to accommodation and the payment system.
After repeated delays the government announced in October 2015 that its reforms would not be introduced until the end of 2016. The reforms however will do little to improve the lot of migrant workers. The new labour law does not abolish the notorious exit permits, and workers still have to get their employers’ permission to leave the country. Workers will supposedly be able to appeal to the Interior Ministry, but most workers live in fear of that Ministry. Migrant workers still do not have the right to join a union or have a collective voice with elected workplace and representative committees. Domestic workers remain wholly excluded from the labour law.
Around 800 construction workers employed by two subcontracting companies – Qatar Freelance Trading and Contracting as well as Qatar Middle East Co. – went on strike in November 2014 in protest against breaches of employment contracts and against poverty wages. The workers had signed contracts before leaving their home countries for Qatar; on arrival in Doha their passports were confiscated and contracts torn up. They were then forced to work for wages one-third lower than promised. Witnesses have reported that a supervisor attacked workers with a plastic pipe when police arrived to start the arrests, and those arrested are believed to be heading for the notorious Doha Detention Centre where migrant workers are often held incommunicado for long periods before eventual deportation.
Today, migrant workers comprise roughly 94% of Qatar’s workforce, equal to about 1.2 million workers. That figure continues to rise, as workers are recruited in vast numbers, largely from South Asia, to build infrastructure and stadia for the 2022 World Cup. Like many other migrant workers in the Gulf region, they face severe, discriminatory policies and practices that violate their fundamental human and labour rights, including the right to freedom of association. Even Qatari nationals have only limited rights in this regard.
Numerous workers are precluded from forming or joining a union due to categorical exclusions in law. In practice, 90% of the total workforce is excluded from the right to form or join a union.
Legal proceedings are lengthy, making workers wait for months with no pay while they seek reparation for an injustice. Very few migrant workers who have had their rights violated have the necessary financial resources to survive while they wait and so they go back home without taking legal measures.
Moreover, Qatar has barely 150 labour inspectors and the inspections do not include interviews with the workers. It is hard to imagine therefore how the authorities really intend to ensure the respect of their labour legislation.
About 132.000 migrant domestic workers are employed in Qatar. These women are even more vulnerable to exploitation than other categories of migrants, because domestic work is specifically excluded from labour legislation.
Migrant workers are recruited through a sponsorship system called «kafala»: a local employer must stand as guarantor, and they must usually work for that employer throughout their stay, as they cannot change jobs without the authorisation of the employer. The ILO has stated this system could lead to forced labour and human trafficking. In 2009 the authorities confirmed they could give migrants temporary permits to work elsewhere in the event of a dispute with the guarantor, but few migrant workers are aware of this possibility.
Employers often confiscate migrant workers’ passports to make sure they do not leave the country before the end of their contract, even if the terms of the contract are violated. Withholding passports has been illegal since 2009 if it exceeds the time needed to obtain a residence permit, but the local press reported, in March, the results of a survey among Asian migrants: 88% of them said they had had to hand their passport over to their employer.
In December the local media reported that the authorities intended to create a “constituent labour committee” that would be one step towards the creation of a trade union confederation, and whose task would be to protect workers’ rights. The 50 members of the committee were to be representatives of workers in the public and private sectors. However there was nothing to suggest that the workers would have any say in the appointment of these “representatives”. It appeared, rather, that the committee would be under government control.
In May the International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) refused to take part in events to celebrate press freedom organised by UNESCO and the government of Qatar. “The event is held in a country which supports an international media freedom centre, but refuses to allow local journalists to form their own independent union or association” the IFJ pointed out.