Chicken for lunch?
I’m not sure what those “guest workers” are complaining about. Really. They just hear a rumour by the Indian Ambassador that his country is planning a minimum wage for their citizens working in the Gulf for BD100 ($265) a month, and they automatically think that they should be included in that new criteria. Not only that, they mistakenly assume that as they are working on multi-billion Dollar projects, they think that their contractors – their benefactors – whom they wrongfully accuse of enslaving them and who make no qualms of reiterating that status in their provision of comfy accommodation complete with amenities, could actually afford to raise their wages! I think they just conveniently forget that they have already agreed to their BD57 dinars ($150) a month they legally – and I stress – legally signed in India or wherever they were recruited from. And come on, they don’t know much business, do they? Budgets have long been set and any variation would actually kill the poor downtrodden contractors!
Blah. Those people are never satisfied. I mean, just look at how well they are treated! They are even given wholesome and well prepared chicken for lunch!
Don’t these people realise that some Arabs in our beloved Arab World still cannot afford the luxury of meat for their daily diet? I’ve heard that some even run after the zoo animals’ feed carts crying “feed us meat, feed us meat, we want meat” and fight even lions for the privilege. Roman gladiators would be impressed, I tell you.
Regardless, I join Mr. Sameer Nass, the chairman of the Construction Committee at the Chamber of Commerce who rightly says: “This will not do“. I agree with him, all of those rabble rousers should be sent home, carted off in a ship and dumped at the closest port of call in their countries of origin. That will teach them. Way above their station, they are. They should know that we could easily import labour from other and more deserving places in the world whom we will undoubtedly shower with our largess. Isn’t some Gulf countries already negotiating with Vietnam and parts of Africa for labour? Africa should be easy really, we’ve had hundreds of years of experience in that continent, but Vietnam I’m not too sure of. Other than them soundly defeating the Americans, I don’t know much about them, but that should make them a bit more of a “security risk,” I should think, but seeing as how our intelligence community actually assisted the Thais where our boys “provide accurate information on the continuing insurgency in the three Thai southern provinces of Yala, Pattani and Narathiwat“, we do do our homework and that security risk shouldn’t be an issue, considering how far our intelligence tentacles reach!
Contingency planning, which shows our complete preparedness for any eventuality, does not stop at finding alternate sources for manual labourers, of course, witness the 3,000 Thai nurses being trained in Bangkok and who will be deployed here soon. I’m not sure what they will be trained in; however, but whatever it is, I hope they also provided tested prophylactics as some of those Thais have been found blasé about their use; hence, suffer the indignity of being sent home with our material thanks in them. We should welcome them regardless of course, especially as it seems that our ungrateful local nurses seem to want to tread the same route as those unwelcome guest workers.
the wirter of Chicken for lunch? has proudly posted a snap. if he thinks that luxury then anyone could imagine what must be bahrain’s standard of living? it will be better if you could some good snap where u could really feel proud of what u r?
the writer of Chicken for lunch? also mention in his article that his beloved Arab World still cannot afford the luxury of meat for their daily diet? I’ve heard that some even run after the zoo animals’ feed carts crying “feed us meat, feed us meat, we want meat” and fight even lions for the privilege.
what a shame. u people can feed ur animals with meat but not to ur so called beloved arabs.
Sam
You are stating the obvious. Come up with an alternative, stretch your argument. Yes they are luxuries, but that’s what people are willing to pay for. More importantly much of our development in the region is based on exploiting (by the way I use this term in a neutral sense) cheap imported labor resources. Are we willing to forgo “our lovely new buildings and developments, streets”? If asked, the majority today will probably tell you no.
Zafar. You. Are. Stupid.
Oh and, Thanks Bonny for the updates, and Mahmood for the links!
what pisses me off the most is that whenever it comes to expats everyone starts defending and cursing bahrainis and bahrain itself.. well why don’t you look at the other side and see that there are ALOT of bahrainis out there who are unemployed and those who are employed are getting wages of BD 250 a month, and that’s the maximum!!! the difference is the bahraini gets the salary ans that’s it.. the expat gets the salary, accomodation, transport, annual tickets to go bak home, and sometimes even more!! i dont want to start on european and american expats who get paid freakin too much more than they deserve.. and about the asian workers, well they came here happily because just like Sadek said what they’re having here is luxurious to what they had back in India where even walking down the street gives you diseases cause its so filthy.. they signed contracts knowing and agreeing to what they’re getting paid.. most of these workers aren’t even educated, how much do you think they should get paid? i think they’re getting paid well, because the BD 57 here is so much more to them there back home.. the cleaner who used to clean my school showed me pictures of her home back in India, after 7 years of wroking in Bahrain.. I swear her house is much prettier and bigger than ours. A Bahraini can’t afford building a house this quickly, that’s why they always end up taking loans that they’ll pay for the rest of their lives.
Well to keep it short, those workers knew what they were getting and they signed official contracts that they agree, so I believe they dont have the right to protest and demand more.. and yes I agree that the employers in Bahrain exploit to the maximum but don’t forget that Bahrainis are also exploited just the same.. But if these workers and all the other expats in Bahrain don’t appreciate what they have in here then they can always leave.. go back to your country and let’s see them treat you and give you a life better than the one you have here.. I mean let’s face it, you wouldn’t leave everything behind in your country to come here unless you were offered a better life…
oh and one more thing, everyday when you read the GDN turn to the letters page and you’ll see how ungrateful these expats are.. cursing Bahrain and Bahrainis as much as they want.. for god’s sake have some conscience.. and I seriously think the GDN should stop publishing those stupid meaningless letters.. and start appreciating what this little island has given you.. everytime I write a letter to the GDN they neglect it and never publish it, although I write it with great manner and respect, but they prefer publishing the ones that curse Bahrainis, probably cause the majority of the people who work in the GDN are also expats!
Bahraini and Screwed…. I agree with you…Expats do get salary, accommodation, transport, annual tickets. I think unemployed Bahrainis should start campaigning for jobs in the construction sector. There are thousands of jobs out there, for example- the current strike if the 2000 plus workers are deported…There will be immediately 2000 jobs available. Ask you friends to apply
Bahraini & screwed-ask yourself just one thing, why are the expats here in the first place? Is it because they fill jobs that Bahraini’s will not do? Why would a company hire western expats at 10 times the salary if there was someone already here that is qualified to do the job and willing to accept a lesser salary? There has to be some logic behind why businesses are hiring so many expats…
Discrimination perhaps? I guess no one is expemt…
Who do you think writes our labor laws? Who’s in charge and making sure our expat community are being looked after and being made to feel welcome? Who heads these construction companies?
If you compare what they earn here compared to what they would earn for their professions back home you’ll find they are in fact UNDER paid thus companies need to compensate for that by offering to pay for living expenses. These individuals bring a level of professionalism, worldly experience, and skills that cant be found within the local workforce. We all have our reasons for working & living in Bahrain. Some chase the buck, others move to be with family, others move to experience something new.
You’d be surprised how little is on paper! These construction companies try their best to get as little as they can on paper for fear of future ramifications!
Ha!!! Your obviously not a home owner and don’t understand value yet.
Signature Bahraini!
It’s called having an opinion!
update: day 6 of the strike
1,200 workers have agreed to go to work. They say nobody cares about them. It is better to work quietly like animals.
800 workers still on strike. Company has allegedly said that they will be given tickets to return home.
Update : Day 6 : No. 2
Labour Ministry Officials have reportedly told the strikers that they will receive a BD 15/- wage hike. Workers have agreed and work is likely to resume tomorrow.
Dear Bahraini and Screwed
The asian expatriates were willing to sacrifice their family, loved ones, live in chicken coops, forsake their health,and work in environments that did not respect human life, to save for a better future for their loved ones back home.
But now with the Bahraini Dinar diving in value and the rupee ascended to all time high, they are saving almost nothing. They are in a situation where they could earn almost the same if not more in India, while being with their family and not working 12-18 hours a day and without taking the shit from Bahrainis who dont appreciate them.
Also India is one of the largest export patner for Bahrain, with a surplus in trade of more than 260 million in Bahrain’s favour. So remember that India “where even walking down the street gives you diseases cause its so filthy” is subsidising your ass.
Mahmood – was my last post removed because it was off topic?
Yes, sorry.
That’s not really the issue. Had it been, then the flip-side of this is that they are not respected nor appreciated in their own countries. In fact, it squarely portrays their plight in their own communities that they have to endure those hardships in order to travel and work in our countries.
The real issue is that we should never apply the rule of “they’re better off here than they are there” because we rob ourselves of our humanity by applying our morals rather selectively.
Remember the saying “treat others as you wish to be treated yourself“? Well, this is what should be applied regardless of a person’s origin, sexual orientation, colour or any other discriminatory feature.
So if they are our guests in our countries, it is our rules which should be applied to those guests as we apply them to ourselves.
Hence, the “original” labour reform, had it been implemented, would have gone a long way into making this country proud of this small step on the road to full respect of human rights.
What really irks me is how Indians/Pakistanis/Asians in general are treated worse than dirt by elitist GCC Arab nationals. (Insert generalization disclaimer here).
A family member of mine who used to work in construction in the gulf once told me about an unofficial “list” those companies kept. But this wasnt just any list. It was a salary-list. On one column you had name, on another you had grade, and on the third, you had nationality.
It gets worse: Apparently there were three “nationalities”: 1) Western. 2) Arab. 3) Asian.
Here’s the real kicker: Your pay was determined by your “nationality”. If you were a qualified Pakistani with a PhD, your pay grade would still not approach that of a Westerner’s with a Bachelors.
When confronted about the issue, management would say: “Hoowa bas Hindi! Wa7ad batani!” (He’s just an Indian! A batani!). (Batan is a province in Pakistan).
I also never understood why those people’s passports were confiscated. The country then becomes like a prison for them. Maybe thats what those in government want.
A local Arab can run over a “batani” and he’ll be able to pay $30 to the Pakistani embassy, and throw in an insult towards them. God help the Pakistani if he should run over a local Arab though.
Pathetic.
-Ibn
The main culprit must be the Ministry of Works and Housing.
If they paid more to have their houses built by trained Bahrainis and stopped trying to give these contracts to the lowest bidder all the time – a process which forces Contractors to use the cheapest labour available in the world rather than encouraging locals – then houses would be built and Bahrainis would have jobs.
I am always disappointed when the King or Works and Housing Minister promises thousands of houses because I know the Bahraini people do not rise to the challange and the Minister does not insist that the workers are Bahrainis – he prefers cheap houses built by cheap Indians. Just look at the Tender Minister as well, full of praise for saving money for the Governent by open tender lowest bidder systems introduced.
If a contractor gave two prices for a housing project – one using Indian labour and the other using Bahrain labour the Government would pick the cheaper Indian one every time.
So stop blaming the Contractors and stop blaming the Indians they are victims of the Ministry’s System for the past five years.
Bahraini and Screwed,
You say “they signed contracts knowing and agreeing to what they’re getting paid”.
I say this should apply to you too! Why are you complaining of being “screwed”? You had agreed to that did you not?
Your argument is poor and shameful. As Mahmood has said “treat others as you wish to be treated yourself“
Alright – I might not think that ministry in particular is to blame entirely – I think the govt as a whole is to blame for not introducing minimum wage for all. This would ensure that Bahraini compete on an equal playing field to imported labour. Wouldnt it be great to see Bahrainis involved in manual labor? Building their own country?
Allot of contractors say introducing a minimum wage would be “detrimental” to the economy. Would it really? If everyone was paid a decent wage would they not have more cash to spend and reinvest it into the economy through the purchase of goods and services?
Just to let you guys know, I think today’s Middle East Business Report on BBC World @ 5:30pm is a must watch. They will be looking at foreign labor and unemployment.
Leonard: Well, if you can’t adapt and learn new skills, I suppose it’s only right to blame others for wanting to take your job. Survival of the fittest, isn’t that the mantra of people with similar ideals?
Mexico? Why would you go there, your ilk don’t want them coming here for a job (well, as long as they’re legal and know their place as farm workers and gardeners y’all want them, right?).
you really think Bahrainis wouldn’t work in the construction sector if they were paid a good wage? haven’t you seen Bahrainis washing cars for money? haven’t you seen them demean theirselves for money? trust me Bahrainis would work in the construction sector if they were paid a decent wage. take the 57 BD salary + accomodation + annual tickets and it might equal something close to 170 BD to 200. Many Bahrainis would be more than happy to get a BD200 salary.. I’m not discriminating, and I don’t want anyone to think that I’m a racist. I’m definitely not.. All I’m saying is the problem is with the government as a whole.. I think you all agree with me when I say that many ministers and other officials aren’t even qualified enough to be in their position, especially those MPs. How do we expect our lives to get better if our futures are in the hands of those? I understand that Asians and all other expats come here for a better living, of course that’s what I said earlier. If I had a chance to leave Bahrain for a better living I will. the thing is, we Bahrainis – or at least myself – are attached to this land in an indescribable way. When I say screwed I dont mean I signed a contract that screwed me up, I mean I’m a Bahraini in my own land, in the one place that I call home and I’m being screwed by the government that for some reason hates Bahrainis. And yes the government does prefer to pay more to expats than less to Bahrainis. It’s the sad truth..
Though we know someone who absolutely loves chicken. a link is here http://www.slanderyou.blogspot.com. Deep fried especially.
Well B.S let me tell you one thing having a degree fresh out of college means nothing to any employer any where in the world; all it means is you have the basic knowledge to start a bottom level position and learn in the real world.I have been a licenced aicraft engineer for 15 years involved in aviation maintenance for 25 years all over the world both civilian & military how can you say a someone with no experience but has a new licence the same as mine should be paid the same as a western expat everywhere in the world people are paid for there experience, where they have worked and so on. Mahmood understands everything I have said he was a LAME once upon a time.
P.S: BS is a good handle for you Bahraini & screwed
point taken bahraini and screwed…
“Bahrainis would work in the construction sector if they were paid a decent wage. take the 57 BD salary + accomodation + annual tickets and it might equal something close to 170 BD to 200. Many Bahrainis would be more than happy to get a BD200 salary..”
but consider this
1.)would you stay in the kind of accommodation they were given?..
2.)they don’t get an annual ticket.. it every two years… so lets do some math… (tkt to india – BD220 divide by 24months (2years))= BD9/- permonth
So the the total monthly salary including ticket= 57+9= BD66 (and not BD170 as you have assumed)
3.)The workers allege they are not given medical leave.. one man said he fell from a scaffolding and hurt his knee… he showed his swollen knee to me.. another said his nose was cut in two (both claimed the incidents occurred on worksites.)
They both said that they had they salary cut for the days they didn’t work while recovering and no insurance papers were filed by the company. The men were told that if they wnted insurance they had to do it….
I agree with you if the men had a decent place to live and proper medical care they had no right to complain.
But if you thing there are Bahrainis willing to work for BD57 (including accommodation)a month and support a family, get me their signatures. i promise you i will do my best to get it publicized and get them jobs. Please don’t think i am being sarcastic, i mean what i say.
I have lived in bahrain from 1992 and have worked with seen how some of the poor bahraini’s live. They are my friends and i am glad to say that they are hard working. Three of them work two jobs in order to save money.
I spoke to them today b4 writing this and they said that it is ridiculous thought that somebody should think that any person (not bahraini) could live on BD57 a month even including accommodation.
“That amount is not enough for even an individual,” one of them told me.
I agree Bonny, quite true. This in fact is a global phenomenon, certainly transcendent of any specific region or country. Its true, as Bahraini says, that domestic laborers would perform the tasks done by migrants or “guest workers” if they were paid a fair and reasonable wage. However, wealthy capitalists are given the option of using migrant labor at a fraction of the cost. Works for them.
As Bahraini points out, many of the migrants are so poor and destitute in their home countries that they are compelled to accept even the miserable wages and living conditions that are offered them abroad, such as in Bahrain. Unsurprisingly, the ruling elites who control the government – the same class which controls business – are willing to “turn a blind eye” to the despicable conditions under which these people are forced to live. When they protest and struggle for better lives, many people blame them for their present condition, and tell them to shut up and accept their position. All the while, the wealthy owners are profiting off of the broken backs of our brothers and sisters.