FNV trade union official Zamaney Menso: ‘We will stay active in Qatar’

Supported by Mondiaal FNV, the international sectoral union BWI is working steadily to improve the working conditions of migrant workers in Qatar, and have definitely achieved some successes. In light of the FIFA World Cup events in November 2022, the BWI organised a football event between international trade union members and migrant workers in this Arab Emirate. FNV trade union official Zamaney Menso was also present.

Zamaney Menso

For eight years, the Building and Wood Workers' International (BWI) has been committed to improving the situation for migrant workers in Qatar after it was announced that Qatar would be hosting the World Cup in November 2022. The country focused on building stadiums and improving its infrastructure. However, the 300,000 Qatari were not getting their own hands dirty, and left the construction work to the two million migrant workers from Asia and Africa who descended upon this oil-producing country. The BWI quickly realised that this would happen at the expense of the human and labour rights of the migrant workers. 

Kafala system abolished but 'poorly enforced'

Initially, migrant workers came under the kafala system (a system used to monitor migrant workers, working primarily in the construction and domestic sectors in Gulf Cooperation Council member states and a few neighbouring countries), which required them to have a sponsor before they could enter the host country. Furthermore, they had to surrender their passports, could not freely switch employers, and were not even allowed to decide when to visit family in their home country. This system was abolished under the considerable pressure that was brought to bear by the BWI, among other organisations. ‘However’, says Zamaney Menso, FNV trade union official for the Construction and Housing sector (sector Bouw en Wonen), ‘it is still poorly enforced’.

Underground network for women

Menso is also a member of the Board of Mondiaal FNV as well as the BWI World Board. ‘If you organise world championships in a country like Qatar, you know that this will go hand in hand with violations of human rights and deaths’, she says. ‘We don’t have any figures, but many people died during the construction of stadiums, and these were not all industrial accidents. However, it doesn’t alter the fact that every death is one too many. When the BWI launched a campaign, the living conditions were very poor, wages were extremely low, and the number of hours people had to work in the scorching sun were terribly high. In the Netherlands, one would not even subject a dog to such conditions’.

Mondiaal FNV supported BWI’s projects right from the start, thanks in part to its donors. ‘We were one of the first and most loyal partners of the BWI, which is now bearing fruit. For example, we have developed a vast network in Qatar, including an underground one specifically for women, who can contact one another quickly by mobile phone if they wish to exchange information. This was a great achievement’. 

More say through employees’ committees 

However, there are more successes to be celebrated. For example, minimum wages were increased, the kafala system was abolished, and living conditions have improved. Even though migrant workers are still not allowed to set up trade unions, they have been given a greater say through employees’ committees that serve as a type of works council. ‘The fact that now we can be present openly in Qatar is also a gain’, Menso adds. ‘At first, we had to enter Qatar stealthily and stay off the grid. Now we have a BWI staff member permanently present in the country and are engaged in talks with the government’. 

‘Take pride in the job’

The FIFA and the BWI jointly organised a football event in Qatar on 30 March 2022, with migrant workers involved in the construction of the football stadiums playing against young trade union members from all over the world. Four young FNV members also joined the event to draw attention to the demanding working conditions of migrant workers. Menso was also present. ‘The visit to Qatar was good. First, we attended a two-day conference with several stakeholders, including companies. Next, there was a football match with mixed teams of international union members and migrant workers. The winners were awarded a beautiful trophy and honoured abundantly’. 

According to Menso, the nicest thing about the trip was the contact established with migrant workers. ‘I had many conversations with them, and always asked, “What is your greatest wish?”. One woman answered, “To be treated almost as well as a man”. Another woman, who was employed as a domestic worker, said, “That I take pride in my job, and that people respect me”. This underlines how distressing the situation is in Qatar’. 

Focus on the future

Over the past few years, the situation in Qatar has attracted more and more attention at the international level. The World Cup finals will be played on 18 December 2022. What will the BWI do next? Menso: ‘Today, we no longer focus solely on construction workers but also on other work activities carried out by migrant workers. That is why we were able to set up an underground network for women, who work in the construction industry as well as in the hotel and catering sector, or as domestic workers. We consider it important to listen to their specific needs. For example, some women stated that they need more empowerment. I can imagine that, in line with this, we will develop training that will be provided twice a year’. 

During the BWI conference at the end of March 2022, it became clear that migrant workers would like to have their own centre in Doha, the capital of Qatar. ‘A centre where migrant workers can gather, ask questions about their rights and obligations, but also attend training sessions and develop social networks’, Menso explains. ‘In the next few months, migrant workers hope to generate as much attention as possible to develop this centre because they know that this media attention will stop as soon as the World Cup comes to an end on 18 December’. 

Gesture towards migrant workers 

In the meantime, the BWI has initiated talks with parties such as the UEFA and the FIFA. ‘Major sponsors are favourably disposed towards the idea, but the government of Qatar is still not cooperative. We therefore engage in lobbying activities to obtain permission and ask the football unions to support us. We hope that the FIFA will assume its responsibility in this respect. There are multiple ways such a centre could contribute to the improvement of human rights for this group of workers. It would be a great gesture towards migrant workers after many years of campaigning activities by the BWI and its partners’.