A recent report by the Business and Human Rights Resource Centre (BHRRC) - Opens in new tab shines a light on the rampant human rights abuse of labour migrants in Saudi Arabia’s renewable energy sector.
According to the report, “Companies executing these projects are failing to conduct adequate human rights due diligence and [to] include migrant workers as key actors effecting the energy transition.” 34 workers from nine renewable energy projects including Al Kahfah Solar PV Project, Sudair Solar PV Project, NEOM Green Hydrogen Project, Muwayh Solar PV Project and Saad 2 Solar PV Project were interviewed. A total of 41 companies linked to these projects were named, including Saudi Aramco, HSBC, Larsen & Toubro, Standard Chartered and JP Morgan Chase. The companies are linked either individually or as part of a joint venture, in their capacity as financier, project developer or construction/engineering contractor.
Not only did less than a third of the project developers express commitment to international standards on human rights, most of them failed to recognise migrant workers as an at-risk group, and held no social dialogue with them.
“Environmental and social impact assessments of renewables projects named in this report, which should be approved by project financiers, fell short in identifying and addressing risks to migrant workers,” the report states.
Saudi Arabia [is] a microcosm of the human rights risks in the industry for the region, as well as live tracking by the Resource Centre of 40 renewables projects there and interviews with workers, this report brings this into sharp relief: over half (53%) of migrant workers interviewed for this report experienced five or more indicators of forced labour.
These abuses evidence an environment of alarming dehumanisation. One migrant worker on a Saudi Arabian renewable project put it simply: [we] are “treated as if [we] are machines.”
Some of the key findings of the report include, but are not limited to:
All workers interviewed were subjected to labour rights violations during recruitment [...]. All workers were charged recruitment fees, leading to harmful psychological, financial and social impacts; no worker reported being reimbursed for these fees.
None of the project developers or construction and engineering companies working on the projects named in this report publicly committed to the Employer Pays Principle, - Opens in new tab the international standard for fair recruitment.
Workers reported unacceptable and egregious working conditions
across multiple renewables projects. Low wages pushed migrants to work excessive hours to support families back home. On average, interviewees reported earning just over USD370 per month without overtime. The majority (19 of 20) worked unreasonable hours and over half worked seven days a week almost always or all the time. [Which is against the Saudi Labour Law]Eighteen of 20 workers reported unsafe working conditions, most commonly extreme heat exposure (18 workers).
Workers faced severe restrictions on their freedom of movement. Only two said they could change job at any time without their employer’s permission, despite much touted 2021 reforms establishing a government – facilitated job transfer process.
Access to justice continued to be a challenge, with workers reporting substantial barriers due to fear of reprisal. Four protests against working conditions were reported, and those who participated in three of them were dismissed and deported
