The Nepali Guards Caught in the Chaotic US Evacuation of Afghanistan
Summary
Date Reported: 29 Aug 2023
Location: Afghanistan
Companies
GardaWorld - EmployerOther
Government ( Public Entities ) - GovernmentAffected
Total individuals affected: Number unknown
Migrant & immigrant workers: ( Number unknown - Nepal , Security companies , Gender not reported )Issues
Poverty Wages , Reasonable Working Hours & Leisure Time , Access to Non-Judicial Remedy , Occupational Health & Safety , Access to InformationResponse
Response sought: Yes, by The Resource Centre
Story containing response: (Find out more)
Action taken: The Business and Human Rights Resource Centre invited GardaWorld to respond to the allegations in the article, and to outline what steps the company has taken to remediate the workers following the evacuation. GardaWorld did not respond to the Resource Centre’s request for comment. After the evacuation, other than receiving some compensation for lost belongings and salary, the workers stated that they never heard from GardaWorld again. The article alleges their abrupt loss of income caused financial hardship. The article notes that several of the guards interviewed are ‘struggling to pay for housing costs and their children’s education’
Source type: News outlet
“The Nepali Guards Caught in the Chaotic US Evacuation of Afghanistan”
…From one end of the Himalayas to the other, thousands of Nepalis recruited as security guards to protect embassies and compounds in Afghanistan left their families and homes behind for pay of about $4 per hour. During a typical 12-hour shift, they held dangerous positions…
…Around the time of the evacuations, the U.S. Central Command reported that out of the nearly 27,000 contractors working for the United States in Afghanistan, only 11,000 of them (around 40 percent) were American…
… at least 12 Nepali guards hired under U.S. government subcontracts were killed or injured in Afghanistan…
Neither the U.S. nor Nepali governments were responsible for evacuating the guards safely. Instead, their safety and well-being was left in the hands of GardaWorld, the private security company which had contracted them…
Other than receiving some compensation for their lost belongings and salary, they never heard from GardaWorld again. Two years later, most are still unemployed…