The Guardian 6 December, 2006
Mauritius:
Foreign workers demand rights
Nasseem Ackbarally
PORT LOUIS: Fifteen years after they first came to Mauritius, "guest workers" from China,
India and Bangladesh still face resistance to their efforts to improve the difficult conditions
they live and work under.
Some 30,000 foreign workers, more than half of them women, are working in Mauritius. During the
1990s, the government agreed that textile and clothing employers could recruit foreign workers to
address labour shortages.
These workers enjoy little legal protection under Mauritian law, and those who have protested
about their working and living conditions have been summarily deported.
Poor living and working conditions have forced foreign workers to take to the streets, leading to
clashes with the police. Their daily working hours stretch from 8.30am until 11pm, with only two
breaks of half-an-hour each in between. Back at their living quarters, they have to queue to
wash.
Reeaz Chuttoo, a trade unionist from the Federation of Progressive Unions (FPU), describes
foreign workers' dormitories as so cramped that they keep their clothes under the bed or hanging
from the walls.
"Employers prefer to hire foreign workers because they are vulnerable as far as their rights and
demands are concerned", Chuttoo said. Due to pressure from the private sector, the government
has not put a legal framework in place to protect foreign workers.
Chinese and Indian workers who organised against their employers have been deported from the
island state. The so-called ring leaders have been targeted, in particular, causing foreign workers
to become cautious about publicly claiming their rights.
Chinese workers in the clothing and textile sector are offered a three-year contract to earn the
industry rate of US$100 a month.
Workers from India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh also receive the basic monthly salary of 100 dollars
plus a food allowance of 20 dollars. Employers pay their accommodation, electricity and water bills,
as well as air tickets.
At government level, labour and Industrial Relations Minister Vasant Bunwaree told parliament in
early November that Mauritius needs foreign workers as Mauritians do not possess the required
skills to do certain jobs.
In light of an expected boom due to new tourism projects, the construction industry wants to hire
more foreign workers. This drive is meeting with strong resistance from the construction unions.
Their members have staged several demonstrations in front of parliament and have addressed a
letter of protest to the government.
Foreigners' working conditions in the construction industry are atrocious. They work long shifts, and
are not issued with protective gear in some cases. Some foreign construction workers wear tennis
shoes instead of steel-toe shoes.
IPS