'Die first, get paid later'

Migrant workers in Saudi Arabia are enduring widespread ill-treatment including forced labour to build giga-projects as FIFA prepares to officially announce the country as host of the 2034 World Cup next week, a rights group said.

Details of pervasive labour exploitation are contained in a 79-page report by Human Rights Watch (HRW) titled ‘Die First, and I’ll Pay You Later’ including exorbitant recruitment fees, wage theft, dangerous working conditions, and barriers to mobility.

Most of the projects are funded by the Saudi Public Investment Fund (PIF), and HRW condemns FIFA for proceeding without enforcing robust human rights commitments, raising concerns about potential exploitation tied to the massive infrastructure demands of hosting the tournament.

“The human engine powering the construction of Saudi Arabia’s multibillion dollar giga-projects is the migrant workforce, who are facing widespread rights violations in Saudi Arabia without any recourse,” says HRW’s deputy director for the Middle East, Michael Page.

“FIFA’s fake evaluation process to award the 2034 World Cup without legally binding human rights commitments will come at an unimaginable human cost, including adverse intergenerational impacts on migrant workers and their families,” Page added.

The report is based on interviews with 155 current and former migrant workers, mainly from South Asia, and families of labourers who have died. Workers are often forced to pay illegal recruitment fees, and in Saudi Arabia employers frequently violate contracts, withhold wages, and impose severe restrictions on job transfers.

'Die first, get paid later' NT — Photo: ALEX SERGEEV/WIKIMEDIA

One worker reported being denied wages after two months, with a manager telling him, “Die first, and I’ll pay you later.” Another worker employed at the NEOM project described paying up to $3,200 to move to another job, while many were forced to sign agreements to reimburse employers for leaving their positions.

The number of migrant workers in Saudi Arabia is more than 13 million, and is expected to increase further as planned giga-projects are built. Of them, currently about 380,000 migrant workers are from Nepal.

Workers also face extreme isolation and unsafe conditions, including heat exposure exacerbated by climate breakdown. HRW had issued a similar report on worker abuse ahead of and during the FIFA World Cup in Qatar in 2022.

“Every day, one or two workers faint,” said a laborer on the NEOM project, a flagship PIF-funded futuristic megacity called ‘The Line’. Uninvestigated deaths are common, with 80% of 884 Bangladeshi worker deaths between January-July 2024 attributed to ‘natural causes’ without proper examination.

A report in Migration-Rights.org in 2022 calculated that at least one worker a day died in Saudi Arabia. And an ITV report earlier this year said at least 21,000 migrant workers had already died during construction of The Line.

The widow of one Indian plumber told HRW: “He did not have any health issues. We do not believe that he died of natural death as is mentioned in the death certificate. The death was not investigated properly.”

The worker used to send home $536 every month to cover family expenses, education, and outstanding loans. After his death, the family in India is destitute.

Saudi Arabia’s World Cup bid entails the aconstruction of 11 new stadiums, the refurbishment of four others, and the creation of more than 185,000 hotel rooms, alongside significant transportation infrastructure.

HRW wants FIFA to mandate strict labour protections and accountability measures before awarding World Cup hosting rights, and criticised the Saudi government for failing to enforce existing labor laws and implement promised reforms.

“Saudi authorities are spending billions to polish their global image, but the true cost is borne by exploited workers,” said Page. “Effective labour reforms and enforcement are overdue and critical.”

Without meaningful changes, the HRW report warns, the 2034 World Cup could perpetuate cycles of abuse with devastating consequences for millions of migrant workers and their families.

The HRW report is available in full here.