A display of fireworks and a laser show held at Katara as part of Eid Al Fitr celebrations last night. SHAIVAL DALAL
DOHA: Not many low-income workers, particularly from the constructions sector, get three days off for Eid Al Fitr, as provided for by the country’s labour law.
Several workers, especially from smaller contracting companies, said their past experiences suggested they would be working on the second and third days of Eid without being paid extra.
However, this year the second day of Eid being a Friday, many workers said they were lucky to be enjoying two days off “ever” in a row.
“Normally, we are not informed about work in advance. We would most probably be told tomorrow morning (Saturday) that we have to report for work,” said an Arab expatriate employed with a small contracting firm.
“We have never been paid extra for work during Eid and we have never bothered,” said the expatriate, refusing to give his name as that could cost him his job.
Bigger construction firms pay extra in compliance with the labour law if they engage a worker on national holidays, said workers.
Also, not many low-income construction workers seem to be aware of provisions of the labour law.
“I always thought the three days of Eid holidays you are talking of applied only to government companies,” said a Nepalese worker, giving only his first name as Ramesh.
An Arab national said he had been working with transportation companies for the past several years and changing jobs.
“Now, I work in Ras Laffan,” he said, declining to identify himself for fear of reprisal from his employers.
About Eid holidays, he said they depended from company to company.
Some companies gave just a day off, while others two days. Some paid extra for work, whereas others did not, he said.
“But bigger companies pay extra if they make you work on national holidays,” he added.
“Extra payments are so low that workers don’t complain to the Labour Department,” he insisted.
“Which worker would take such a risk and offend his employer by filing an official complaint?”
Lawyer Mohsin Thiyab Al Suwaidi said according to the labour law all private companies must declare three days of holiday for Eid Al Fitr.
“And those that make you work on either or two or all three days must pay you at the rate of one-and-a-half times a day’s basic salary. That’s the law.”
He, though, agreed the legal provisions are flouted by many companies in the absence of extensive executive regulations (by-laws) to help enforce those provisions.
“The problem with the labour law is that the by-laws exist only for some specific provisions, and not for the entire labour legislation,” Al Suwaidi told this newspaper yesterday.
“I urge the Labour Ministry not only to issue extensive by-laws but also amend the labour law to provide for special ‘hardship allowance’ for workers for the summer months when temperatures are sweltering.”
A Labour Ministry spokesman declined to comment when asked if the Labour Department received complaints from some workers about not being paid extra by their employers despite being deployed on duty during Eid holidays. A senior official from an Asian embassy said last year there were no complaints from construction or any other sector workers from their country here regarding not being paid extra for work during Eid.
“Last year, there were no complaints. And this year we have to wait and see if there are any since the embassy will reopen on Sunday,” said the official.
Prominent businessman and member of Qatar Chamber, representative body of the private sector that the labour law covers, Ahmed Al Khalaf, said that while it was true that many companies made employees work during Eid holidays all of them did pay extra.
“Even the smaller eateries and neighbourhood stores pay for extra work on a normal day as well as holidays as far as I know.”
