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Slavery?


boostah Ok so we all know the indians and pakistan and filipino are maybe happy to find work here even on the wage they are handed, but isnt dubai guilty of slave labour, it dosnt reflect well on the ethics of the country, ofcourse it goes on everywhere and usually under the table, but its a bit more obvious there, i actually complained to hotel management that the workers in the spa area where not being treated fairly after i learned not only off one young lady but many how long they had been working and without a break or food, this in a high energy job in a rather luxurious establishment - what are your views on this? ps. what are all the builders gonna do when the building stops
Jeevan Yea its true, Many indians,pakistani and philipino workers work on a lower salary and for longer hours. Many of this people are talented and have the qualifications and experience which shud help them in getting higher salaries. But at most of the times i guess its these people who are to blame for the kind of salary they get. From my personal experience, when i was seeking a job, the expectaions that i had for a salary used to be a lot higher than other people. The straight answer i used to get was i have your own countrymen willing to work on half your salary, i would rather take him. I would say people are coming here in such high numbers it makes easier for employers to pull down the salary on offer. But i stuck to my guns and got the right job with the right salary:). cheers, Jerry Chocoholic Good for you Jerry! Interestingly enough I was talking to a Filipino guy who works on the abras and does some security at the Madinat today, and he was saying that his country is pretty small with a massive population - 80 million people - and so there just aren't enough jobs to go round, so they're forced to find employment elsewhere, and will probably get more money here than at home. He was a really interesting guy and with the things he was telling me and his knowledge he is seriously wasting his talents doing what he is currently doing, he should be in PR or Marketing! But it's sad to say that slave labour is well and truly alive and well in the UAE and the way in which some people are treated and forced to live is really appalling. Many are promised fantastic opportunities with good salaries and extras, but when they get here it's all hot air, but they're forced to stay and earn what they can as many have borrowed the money to get here in the first place. kanelli The racism and abuse of employees that I have seen here is shocking. I understand that many people want to come to Dubai because there is work that they can't find in their home countries, but still - these people are not being paid like they should be, or treated like they should be. I was really proud of the taxi drivers that striked because of unfair labour practices, as well as the unity and action we've seen on the part of workers in Sharjah whose company closed and bosses have not paid wages for months. Good for them to stand up and fight for more rights! GAB
When building stops generally all other things follow and it is called a recession or a crash. I imagine you mean what happens when it slows down?
Personally I think the treatment of workers surpasses one certain so called first class country I lived in. Having said that compared with home it may seem unfair that there are not "award wages" etc meaning a set of rules that determine the minimum hourly pay and conditions BUT having said that most expats accept a package so the operative word being accept I guess.
Mind you in all expat communities I've lived in people appear to be empathetic to workers but are not even sympathetic, starting at home with their "staff". Their maids are often under paid, over worked and expected to be fulltime babysitter/nanny, fulltime cook and fulltime cleaner- some are even dog walkers!! :roll: XRW-147 Simple economics - supply & demand. The supply of people willing to work for next to nothing here is rediculous its a multi conglomorate's dream come true. Although in countries like Thailand, Indonesia etc you wll find the same situation - the rich get richer, and the poor get poorer. On the other side of the coin though compare what these ppl have here to what they would have with no job back home? I know of a lady working diligently here for 15 years and has managed to buy a mansion back in India as well as save a decent stash from the 'slave' rates she's being paid here. She'll basically be set when she goes back there. kanelli I've heard the opposite. I have coworkers who would make the same money back home after taking into consideration the cost of living here. Some have already quit and moved home. They are in the technical field, so perhaps this makes a difference. I'd probably choose the same if the money was equal and the hours were better - not to mention increased respect, less racism, and close proximity to your family. Chocoholic Kanelli, I think we're probably talking about the real low wage workers, the labourors who basically get nothing and are couped up in labour camps. Plus these guys are working in terrible and dangerous conditions. Two were killed on one construction site a couple of weeks ago when roof panelling fell out on top of them, but of course you'll never hear about it in the press. Another guy had half his leg sliced off. It's like when all the scaffolding collapsed at the airport tens of men were killed, but no-one appeared to take the blame and the true figures of those that died or were injured were never fully released. fayz Dubai is an interesting place; I see people who make AED 700/month own a farm back home, including a huge house, put 3 daughters through university and is pretty much set for retirement. Than you get fools like me who make more but can't seem to save a dime. Dubai is as cheap or expensive as you make it although granted it is becoming more and more expensive every year and how long my friend will be able to send back as much money as he does now is debatable. fayz
I heard 43 dead and 2.5 hours for the first ambulance to show up on site.

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XRW-147 Choco and K, I'd agree with those points, as yes, the labourers here are paid next to nothing for the amount of work they do. I couldn't see labourers/tradesman in a place like Australia ever wanting to work for more than half a day for what these guys are getting paid in an entire month. That said I used to be paying my staff in Indo about the same for a month's work and in a place like that where cost of living is low it was considered a decent wage. Did you get to read that 7 days article about the office boy that earnt 900dhs (or was it 1,000?) a month and was happy with that cause he was still able to have a roof over his head, food to eat, a little (very little) bit for entertainment and still send money back home. My regular petrol pump boys from India, Nepal etc also tell a similar tale with their 600dhs a month. To them it may not be a glorious life, but with little education and where they originate its better than what they could get back home. GAB All construction sites have safety officers/supervisors so it is a misconception that safety is not important. Safety standards and reputations due to safety are key components in winning jobs. Also it is pure economics-there is loss of time due to accidents, a safe job is more productive-also penalties apply (big time!!) when a job goes over time. Chocoholic GAB, sadly not in this country, many sites flout even basic safety rules. Some inspectors from other countries came and did a recent survey and were horrified at what they found. GAB I have never heard of an international construction company that would flout safety...NEVER!! Especially when the onus is literally on their head! XRW-147 Maybe that is why they are not considered as international construction companies here... Chocoholic Absolutely right! Half the companies here don't operate out of the region let alone the country. You see it all the time, guys not wearing hard hats or goggles or wearing harnesses. GAB, sadly much of this stuff is covered up like the accidents I mentioned ealier, and I only know about these things through the people I know in the construction industry. But for every good one, there are loads that don't care. And of course they won't tell the press, because with the world watching Dubai, once revelations like that get out it would cause problems, not to mention cost the companies money in getting upto scratch complying with international standards. There's nothing internationally standard about the UAE, it's a law unto itself. I'm looking out the window right now at the massive builsing going up next door, there are guys crawling all over it and hardly any are using safety gear. XRW-147 Ditto... any time I sit in my living room looking out the window there are countless "accidents waiting to happen". kanelli
You have got to be kidding me! fayz
Not sure of the reliability of the source but yes this is what I heard. There were also 3 laborers killed working on the palm during the tsunami but you’ll never read that in the papers either. the 2.5 hour delay for the Ambulance was in the paper, the number of dead has always been the mystery, from 2 to ~40
<-- does this look like the face of a guy with a sense of humor.
XRW-147 Fayz, it looks more like you're due for a haircut ;) GAB You are not talking about reputable international construction companies. The standards followed by these companies is obviously different and yes, I too can drive past quite a few construction sites and go :shock: :shock: :shock: . There are international construction companies here and I can tell you for a fact (not some rumour from a friend of a friend) safety is followed to the letter. Harnesses BTW on construction sites. :roll: :roll: :roll: :roll: :roll: :roll: :roll: :roll: :roll: :roll: :roll: :roll: They are not rock climbing!! Hard hats and safety boots-must have. What is with the goggles?? :roll: I want to see a job site anywhere in the world where the guys/gals have goggles and safety harnesses!! :roll: :roll: :lol: Provide photos so I can PMSL. BTW you talk of 2.5hours for an ambulance to turn up to site, proper construction company employees know basic first aid (routinely updated) and wouldn't you think somebody would have driven them to a hospital?? Sounds like a bunch of idiots! :shock: Actually I am not that shocked from being an expat but the point is there are reputable construction companies here that follow stringent safety regulations-don't tar the whole industry with the same brush. boostah I think a lot of the builders would be used to those conditions especialy from mumbai, its probably just natural for them, but a minumum "official" wage and some basic human rights would be a nice start,in all sectors. There does seem to be some good contruction companies, b&g gave me a hard hat to walk around their site :lol: I would say workers unions will not be far behind, taxi men always seem to take care of themselves that way..haha a bit off topic but some interesting docs in here aswell especial of modernity and islam merging fayz
I think that is the point maybe not all construction employess are "proper" and also maybe none of them drove or had access to a road vehicle which is quite probable.
I don't recall ever saying all construction copanies were bad or good, just stating what i heard, don't tar me with a brush or if you must at least bring out the feathers as well, its freezing cold today I need another layer :lol: :lol: GAB Fayz-I am in a cr@p mood anyway, so don't listen to the cranky old bag!! I'll bring you a nice wooly to the meet-up just incase you get cold. Wearing thermals under my tweed skirt keeps me warm!! :wink: :lol: GAB Also Fayz the law or rumour that if someone dies and you are the last person with them automatically gets you a "go to jail card" plus you maybe up for blood money maybe one of the reasons people don't deal very well here with accidents. fayz
the blood money is a good point, probably one of the reasons everyone tries to hide things, I never heard of the "automatically go to jail" rule.
Actually the sad reality is someone is probably sitting in an office somewhere and on his balance sheet it probably states paying blood money for 10 individuals is less than the fine for being 3 weeks late on a project so Safety is a cost without benefit attitude that really saddens me. Chocoholic Many people will not help, in the UAE if a person dies on you and you are not a qualified first aider or paramedic, doctor etc then the responsibility is yours - apparently. Also most people are lacking in the basics. There was an incident recently at the airport where an engineer in his little truck over took a fuel tanker and crashed head on into a luggage truck. He was stuck in the vehicle and was obviously injured, the tanker driver, parked up safely and ran over to help as did many other people. He told them not to move the driver as they could make any injuried worse - you should never move someone unless there's a fuel leak or something like that. Sadly the other guys didn't listen, pushed the tanker driver out of the way and just yanked him out, causing him serious spinal injuries on top of the ones he already had. U a E s A i N t I agree that South Asians get low salaries in Hotels & construction firms ... but most of the CEO's are Expats ... they put the salary structure & the terms ... It is not fair, i meet a waiter in a hotel who gets 2000 dhs plus accommodation ... Now that is a ripe off i assume this only happens in private sectors and the Govt. should put strict policies towards this issue ... XRW-147
There's not many "south" Asians here. Mostly west asians. U a E s A i N t
Ok west Asians ... :roll: <<<< but look at the core of the subject bro XRW-147
If you read the thread, I've already put my 2 phils worth on the 'core' of the subject. AFG Hey, what say we start taking pictures along with the construction company name and post in here..... maybe just maybe half a life can be saved. I just saw the other day these guys painting what used to be Ascot hotel in Bur Dubai (maybe it still is Ascot!), it was Dubai Marine earlier...anyway they were all the way up to the 4th floor just balancing themselves...no harness nothing just walking on the scaffolding and painting!!!! :evil: [/list] AFG BTW XR its FILS and not PHILS!!! XRW-147
Dude, is your name Webster? sniper420
xrw HAS HISTORY OF BULL$HITTING AND ignorance XRW-147 That's funny coming from someone who repeatedly posts irrelevant comments in as many posts as he can find in his 15 minutes of net cafe time. sniper420
Well that proved my point - bull$hitting and yapping. Now he will claim he owns the car in his avatar . :lol: XRW-147 Now this will be interesting when I turn up in my car (from the said avatar) to the forum meet on Friday. Did you ever go and check things like I suggested? Or were you just as ignorant as you accuse others to be? sniper420
Oh Lord now he wants me to meet him! Sorry I am straight and male. Now stop flamming XRW and moreover stop yapping XRW-147 Excuse me Mr so called moderator, who flamed who first? I think you must be blind, or illiterate, if you got any idea of me wanting to meet up with you from my previous post. And if you can't take the heat (facts) just hit the power button, pay your few $ for your time on the net, go home and have a cry to your mummy. sniper420
well I proved my point u r dumb and ignorant. now wet ur pants :lol: XRW-147 Actually, u've managed to prove that to be true for yourself. Just insults not even close to resembling a come-back. GAB :lol: :lol: :lol: Reading this was a tiny source of amusement. Funny X!! :lol: kanelli Well, I'm just glad it is a new cast of characters that don't seem to be getting along. Nice to have some variety once in a while :lol: XRW-147 Glad u got a chuckle G. Kanelli, we've locked horns before but I seem to remember it was more a battle of wits last round. This time it was the same old insults and 'comebacks' so was rather boring actually. Still, it makes the morning pass much faster. AFG Wow! I didn't know I could have caused such a ruckus. :shock: AFG Hey you know XR that comment was just me getting back to you (in a light sense) on the accommodation mis-understanding. sniper420
Sup Sissy boy? Still sniveling? Kekekeke. gud. And oh yeah did I tell u that U SUCK? yes u did suck in Dubai forums meet up....... :lol: sniper420 Alrite Darwin's beings there goes a saying "It takes a bunch of monkeys to make whole jungle go berseck" so stop spilling bananas here and throw em at fight club. So Granny of All Dumbos (GAB) no wonder ur descendents havent evolved. Who said Darwin was right? :lol: XRW-147
Likewise Mr Webster :D XRW-147
Sniveling, no. Waiting for signs of intelligence from you, yes. GAB Sniper your cutting comments really aren't sharp enough. X you'll be waiting an eternity! :lol: XRW-147 Gab, if only it was actually worth waiting for. GAB :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: PMSL. An excellent point. sniper420
Ahhhh... There goes a saying" To pop a joke u need sense more even to get it" No wonder U granny and sissy have no sense and worse waiting for my jokes like bedtime story ....get a life guys.................kekekekeke :lol: Oh Mein Gott Sissy and the granny..... :lol: XRW-147 Let me know when "U suck" goes into the 'Greatest jokes of alltime' publication and I'll nominate you for a Nobel prize... but until then you're still a Darwin candidate. GAB U suck biggest of all Sniper! :P XRW-147 Snippy, you make a great case for devolution. sniper420
And u pathethic sissy chimp :munky2: XRW-147 Snippy, you're a laugh a minute mate, keep it up. sniper420
Out of gas L0ser? No wonder ur primitive brain cant handle the pressure. Waiting for one of ur descendents to avenge ur insult eh? kekekkekke And yes u...
Cya l0sers!!!!!!!! kekekeke....... :lol: XRW-147 No point biting when you have no bait Snippy. GAB Errrr... That should be Granny of All Bumbos, honey! :wink: You are just the worstest :roll: with acronyms (letters that stand for things).
:roll: :roll:
BTW-a Darwin Award is for a complete FW. Do a search on the net, you'll piss yourself laughing. ajb
Anyone working on a construction site who has to work outside the edge protection (handrails etc) must wear a harness in NZ .... googles would only be required for certain activities ie concrete cutting. sharewadi
I frequently do googles for all sorts of things now. I've never managed to find my car keys with it though but I'm sure one day it'll be possible :wink: ajb oops mind my spelling!! GAB
I know dear-but that would be a no brainer. The suggestion was that they should wear this sort of gear all the time which :roll: raises the ole eyebrows. Mind you I've seen some fabulous (tongue in cheek) job sites here where they chuck debris from about six floors up and scream out while they do it etc etc ajb well wearing a harness if your working on the ground floor seems a little bit overkill ...... surely it can only apply if there is a risk of falling? I'll get the low down on the health and safety issues within a few weeks of getting up there and keep you posted!!



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