Catherwood LibraryILR School

Despite plans to reform, observers charge that labor conditions for foreign workers in Qatar remain tantamount to "modern slavery". Under current conditions, foreign workers cannot leave Qatar without permission from their employers. Nearly 2 million migrant workers are currently working in the country, largely in construction in advance of the 2022 World Cup. Although Qatar's leadership signed a law giving foreign workers the right to appeal if employers refuse to allow them to leave the country, officials from human rights organizations claim the reforms are largely an empty gesture meant to mollify corporations and governments from investing in Qatar.