1200 workers from a single Qatari company stranded
About 1200 workers from HKH Contracting Co have been left stranded in Qatar after not being paid for several months... For several weeks, the workers went without running water or electricity, depending on Qatar Red Crescent, the Indian Community Benevolent Fund and other community organisations for help and relief supplies, including diesel to power the generators... For several years now, workers say their salaries have been delayed by a few months every time. According to records MR received, between September 2016 and August 2017, five of the payments took six to ten weeks to be processed. On 1 October 2017, when the June salary had still not been credited, workers filed a formal complaint to the management. A verbal assurance was given that ‘everything would be sorted out’ and everyone went back to work. However, things continued to deteriorate and as of now, the staff haven’t received salaries since September 2017... HKH charged their staff visa renewal fees until 2016. Most of the workers did not have a health card. With delayed salaries, it was not always possible for the workers to cough up the fee for work permit renewal...