UAE creates foreign worker protection office

ABU DHABI: The UAE government has announced the creation of an agency to protect the interests of foreign labourers.

Labour Minister Saqr Ghubash was quoted yesterday by the official WAM news agency as saying the agency would monitor complaints from workers about unpaid wages and regulate labour conflicts that emerge over salaries.

He added that consultations would take place with employers over the low level of wages, which is particularly noticeable in the massive construction sector.

The oil-rich and booming United Arab Emirates had a population of some 5.6 million people at the end of 2006, of which some 84 per cent were foreigners and many of whom were low-paid workers from South Asia and Southeast Asia.

Asian workers have demonstrated several times in the past year to demand higher wages and better living conditions despite a ban on public protests in the UAE.

Many construction workers earn less than 200 dollars a month and have been further hit by mounting inflation.