Why labour camp charity work doesn’t help

Charity initiatives for labourers may be doing more harm than good by perpetuating a system that allows organisations to shirk their most basic obligations to workers, writes Eva Fernandes.

When it comes to giving, Ramadan brings out the best in people. Even corporations take their Ramadan charity work seriously, with many organisations embarking on initiatives during the holy month, and some dedicating budget for Ramadan as part of their corporate social responsibility plans.

The kinds of charity favoured by corporations vary; while some align with international refugee relief plans, others contribute towards specific health related causes – eliminating polio or providing clean drinking water for people in developing nations. Here in the UAE, it has become common to focus on the men in labour camps.

Companies and volunteers provide daily iftar meals comprising dates, laban and a piping hot plate of biryani, while others pack care packages complete with shampoo, medication, canned food and rice – there can be no doubt these actions are well received by UAE labourers.

But while the intention is good, the implications and consequences of such acts can be harmful. I’d even go so far as to label this form of charity as a shortsighted block to improving worker rights.

For the sake of this argument, let’s replace the word ‘labourer’ with the word ‘employee’. Would you think it strange if a charity turned up at your workplace and started handing basic hygiene products and bags of rice to the ‘employees’? Would it not be odd if a team of doctors set-up their equipment in your office reception and handed out free pairs of old spectacles to ‘employees’ with failing eyesight?

Of course it would: it’d be awkward to conduct your business while do-gooders were buzzing about in your office lobby, and it would be downright bizarre to have a for-profit company targetted by charity workers. There’s a basic premise at the crux of this problem: shouldn’t companies be paying their ‘employees’ enough money to afford something as basic as shampoo? Or basic medical coverage to help with failing basic health conditions?

If a company is falling their employees on these accounts, shouldn’t the solution come from intervention by the Ministry of Labour rather than your act of goodwill once a year? 

Dubai has taken many progressive steps to help worker rights over the past few years. The new mandatory health insurance law, for example, came into effect earlier this year. Many of those earning less than AED4,000 per month now have access to basic coverage. Once the law has been fully implemented in 2016, labourers in need of medication will be able to purchase their own instead of waiting for a random act of kindness by a volunteering doctor. In addition, according to a report submitted by the Dubai Standing Committee of Labour Affairs at the General Directorate of Residency and Foreigners Affairs, ‘less than 1 percent of labourer housing facilities in Dubai [were found to be] in poor condition.’

Here's the point, the idea that this is a kindness at all bothers me. Why? Because charity should be reserved for the sick, the needy, the handicapped, the aged and the under-privileged. It shouldn’t be required by able-bodied employees who work full-time.

UAE labourers aren’t any of the above; they are contributing members of society who earn a monthly wage that might not be much but, at the same time, should be enough to provide them with healthcare and basic amenities. Sure, it’s noble that you want to fill the gap, but ask yourself: will it help move the system forward?