DUSHANBE, February 12, 2009, Asia-Plus — Migrant construction workers in Russia face widespread abuse both in and outside of the workplace, Human Rights Watch (HRW) said in a report released on February 10.
In a climate of rising hate-motivated violence against migrants, exacerbated by the global financial crisis, the Russian government is failing to protect these workers from abusive employers, employment agencies, and police, according to the report.
The 130-page report, “‘Are you Happy to Cheat Us?” Exploitation of Migrant Construction Workers in Russia,” documents widespread withholding of wages, failure to provide required contracts, and unsafe working conditions by employers at construction sites across Russia. It also details cases in which workers were unwittingly trafficked into forced labor by employment agencies that promised construction jobs in Russia, but then delivered workers to employers who confiscated their passports and forced them to work without wages. In some cases, these workers were confined and beaten.
HRW interviewed more than 140 migrant construction workers who have worked in 49 Russian cities and towns from 2006 to 2008. More than 40 percent of Russia”s 4 million to 9 million migrant workers are employed in construction, which prior to the global economic crisis had been one of the major engines of Russia”s growth. Most migrant workers come from other countries of the former Soviet Union, looking to escape poverty and unemployment. Citizens of most of those countries can enter Russia without a visa.
The report documents exploitation and abuse at a time of Russia”s phenomenal economic growth. With the Russian economy suffering the impacts of the global financial crisis, migrant workers face an increased risk of exploitation and violence, HRW said. It was noted that without urgent action by the Russian government, migrant construction workers would be doubly vulnerable to abuse, both by employers and by others looking to scapegoat migrants for the country”s economic problems.
HRW said that almost none of the workers interviewed had been given contracts, as required by Russian law. The lack of a contract makes workers vulnerable to wage and other abuses and limits their opportunities to seek assistance from official bodies in cases of abuse. Employers routinely withhold wages from workers, make unexpected and illegal deductions in wages, or refuse to pay wages altogether. Workers who refuse to work in protest over unpaid wages may face violence and threats by their employers.
Police regularly target ethnic minorities, including migrant workers, for petty extortion during spot document inspections on the street. Migrant workers told Human Rights Watch that sometimes, during these inspections, police also beat or humiliated them. In some egregious cases, police required migrant workers to perform forced labor at police stations or other locations.
HRW called on the Russian government to ensure rigorous labor inspections, prosecution of abusive employers, and effective regulation of employment agencies. It should also develop accessible complaint mechanisms for victims and timely and effective investigations into allegations of abuse. In addition, further reform in migration law is necessary to allow workers to more easily regularize their stay, making them less vulnerable to abuse and more likely to seek protection from state agencies.
HRW also called on the home countries of migrant workers in Russia to provide more help when their citizens face abuse in Russia, to cooperate with Russian authorities on investigations and prosecutions of abusive employers in Russia, and to establish clear and rigorous regulations for employment agencies that recruit in their countries.
Migrant workers in Russia have a considerable impact on the economies of both Russia and their home countries the report said. Experts estimate that migrant workers contribute eight to nine percent of Russian GDP.
The report says Tajikistan faces additional development and infrastructure challenges to those it shares with its neighbors due to the aftermath of the 1992-1997 civil war. Although growth has averaged 8.7 percent over 2000-2007, the economic situation in the country is dire: 53 percent of the 6.7 million people in Tajikistan live below the poverty line, 17 percent in extreme poverty. While official unemployment is low at 2.4 percent, it is based on only the number of registered benefits recipients and is subsequently a gross underestimate. Unemployment and underemployment are closer to 40 percent.
Among other factors, economic desperation and unemployment have led an estimated 797,000, or 12 percent of the population, to emigrate. Reliance on remittances that migrant workers send from abroad, 98 percent of which come from Russia, is officially 37 percent of GDP. Unofficial estimates are much higher, with some figures at double the official estimates. Russia has a GNI per capita income of over eight times higher than that of Tajikistan, which attracts much of young Tajik labor force for seasonal work. However, the 2008 economic downturn has resulted in a sharp decrease in remittances; several banks through which migrants send money report a 15 to 20 percent decrease in transfers to Tajikistan from October to November 2008.
Seasonal migration from Tajikistan abroad has increased in the last decade, and particularly in the age groups 20-29 and 40-49.
