Deserted in the sands: migrant workers in the UAE

Around 12 million foreign workers are estimated to live in the Gulf, where they are forbidden to form labour unions.

Some progress on workers' rights has been achieved, and the labour laws on the books in certain countries, including the UAE, does technically protect workers, Azfar Khan, a senior migration specialist at the International Labour Organisation, told Al Jazeera.

But such laws often are not enforced due to "policy incoherence", Khan said, especially in the UAE, where workers in different industries are covered by different sets of laws.

Still, the promise of higher wages seems likely to continue luring laborers to the Gulf. But the abandoned workers in the Sharjah camp say they want to return.

Category:

News & Politics

Tags:

• migrant
• workers
• Al
• jazeera
• ILO
• Regional
• Office
• for
• Arab
• States
• International
• Labour
• Organization