QATAR
Thanks to huge oil and gas resources, Qatar is one of the richest countries in the world and Middle East as well. According to Countryaah.com, Qatar is an absolute monarchy where most of the legislative, executive and judicial power is exercised by the emir himself. Over 90 percent of the labor force are migrant workers who have no trade union rights at all.
Country Facts
State condition: Emirate
Surface: 11,586 km2
Capital: Doha
Language: Arabic
Labor market and economy:
The availability of oil and gas has made Qatari citizens one of the richest peoples in the world. At the same time, citizens make up only about 10 percent of the country’s approximately two million residents. Citizens of Qatar are managers, supervisors and financiers, while construction, service and transportation are performed by migrant workers. Another large group of migrant workers work as domestic workers. Most migrant workers come from India, Nepal, the Philippines and Bangladesh. Wage levels vary greatly between different groups in the labor market. Qatar lacks fixed minimum wages.
SAUDI ARABIA
Saudi Arabia is a kingdom that occupies a large part of the Arabian Peninsula. Saudi Arabia is a dictatorship and one of the world’s most conservative countries. Trade unions are banned.
Country Facts
State condition: Monarchy
Surface: 2 149 690 km2
Capital: Riyadh
Language: Arabic
Labor market and economy:
Saudi Arabia’s wealth has been created through oil. The country has about 25 percent of the world’s oil resources. The country’s most important export product is also oil. The climate and deserts mean that agriculture has limited conditions. But through large irrigation projects, the country is trying to become self-sufficient in food. The country also has large farms with cattle.
SYRIA
The civil war has shattered Syria’s economy. The country’s trade union organization is controlled by the state and is close to the government.
Country Facts
State condition: Republic
Surface: 181 180 km2
Capital: Damascus
Language: Arabic
Labor market and economy:
The labor market and economy in Syria cannot be separated from the country’s political development. Syria is a dictatorship that has been ruled with an iron fist by the Ba’ath party and the ruling al-Assad family since 1963. The revolt of the democracy movement during the Arab Spring of 2011 began peacefully but was met by massive brutality from the government. The conflict turned into a bloody civil war between government forces and several rebel groups seeking to overthrow President Bashar al-Assad’s regime. Thereafter, IS grew and for a period controlled large areas of the country. The conflict in Syria has led to 450,000 people dying and led to more than 13 million people being forced to flee, of which 5 million are fleeing the country. The conflict in Syria has shattered the country’s economy and labor market. Before the war, the country had a functioning economy, with manufacturing,
UNITED ARAB EMIRATES
The United Arab Emirates is one of the richest countries in the world. Wealth has arisen through the export of oil. Democracy is absent and the large number of migrant workers working in the country is being systematically exploited. In international contexts, the country is called the UEA (United Arab Emirates). Trade union rights are severely curtailed.
Country Facts
State condition: Federation
Surface: 83 600 km2
Capital: Abu Dhabi
Language: Arabic, in addition Persian, Hindi etc
Labor market and economy:
Since the early 1970’s, the oil industry has developed rapidly and contributed to the country’s rapid economic development. The oil industry is headquartered in Dubai and Abu Dhabi. Other important sources of income are tourism and domestic airlines. The country also has some of the world’s most spectacular properties, such as the Burj Khalifa, the world’s tallest building (with a height of 828 meters).
Almost 90 percent of the workforce in the country consists of migrant workers, mainly from India, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Nepal and the Philippines. As early as the early 1970’s, the United Arab Emirates introduced the so-called Kafala system. This means that the migrant workers’ permission to stay in the country is linked to the employer they work for. If the migrant worker resigns, he or she will have to move back to the country of origin. The system creates extreme pressure on migrant workers. Although the conditions are miserable, many migrant workers feel compelled to continue working. Migrant workers also often feel pressure from relatives in their country of origin. Often the relatives are dependent on the money that the migrant workers send home. If migrant workers lose their jobs, the whole family will suffer.
YEMEN
Yemen is located in the south of the Arabian Peninsula. The military battles in the country have created one of today’s greatest humanitarian disasters. The Yemeni government receives support from Saudi Arabia in the civil war against the Iranian-backed Huti rebels. The majority of the population is in need of humanitarian aid and protection. The former trade unions no longer have any functioning activities.
Country Facts
State condition: Republic
Surface: 527 968 km2
Capital: Sanaa
Language: Arabic
Labor market and economy:
Yemen is a poor country. The majority of the residents have only been to school for a few years. Employment is dominated by agriculture and GDP per capita is lower than in Laos. Important exports have previously been crude oil, coffee and cotton. As a result of the civil war, trade has declined. Even before the civil war, the employment rate was low and unemployment was high, especially among women and young people.