Qatar: 100 Migrant Workers at Risk of Deportation for Protesting Against Low Pay

At least 100 migrant workers in Qatar are at risk of deportation after they were arrested for protesting against low pay.

The men were employed as construction workers by two companies, Qatar Freelance Trading and Contracting, and Qatar Middle East Co, according Doha News.

Workers said police officers showed up in SUVs, accompanied by a company bus, at their camp after several hundred labourers has been on strike for three days.

The men said that when they resisted, a camp boss struck several workers with a piece of plastic pipe.

Witnesses said the incident followed weeks of grievances as workers asked for a raise, as well as the improvement of accommodation and working conditions.

"I'm hard working, but the salary is not on time, the food is not good ... and when people are sick, the company takes their pay," one man said.

The workers estimated that roughly 800 people participated in the strike, although company managers say the figure was much lower.

Some workers from Nepal said they had originally signed contracts for a monthly salary of QR1,200 (£209) plus QR200 (£35) for food.

However, when they arrived in Qatar they were forced to relinquish their passports and sign a blank contract.

The incident occurred a few months after the UN slammed Qatar for the working conditions of migrants, who are denied access to justice.

The International Labour Organisation (ILO) urged the country, who is employing hundreds of workers for the expansive building projects in the run up to the 2022 World Cup, to review the so-called "guest worker" system.

Migrant workers are often paid late and, in some instances, they are not paid at all and do not have anyone who represents them.

The ILO urged Qatar to "ensure without delay, access to justice for migrant workers, so that they can effectively assert their rights [...] strengthening the complaints system and the labour inspection system".