Migrant workers who traveled to Saudi Arabia to work on the Riyadh Metro project faced a decade of severe exploitation, Amnesty International reported. Workers were forced to pay exorbitant recruitment fees, endure dangerous heat, and accept extremely low wages while performing arduous tasks on one of Saudi Arabia’s flagship infrastructure projects. Despite the project being promoted as the backbone of Riyadh’s transport system, workers experienced systemic abuse under a labor system that allowed multinational and local companies to profit at their expense.
Many of the 38 interviewed workers from Bangladesh, India, and Nepal were exploited even before arriving in Saudi Arabia, paying between USD 700 and USD 3,500 in recruitment fees to agents in their home countries, often leading to significant debt. These payments exceeded legal limits set by origin countries and violated Saudi law prohibiting worker-borne recruitment fees, compounding the vulnerability of workers once on site.
Once in Saudi Arabia, wages were shockingly low, with many earning less than USD 2 per hour and working over 60 hours per week. Workers described extreme heat conditions, often surpassing 40°C, as unbearable and a constant hazard, with government regulations providing inadequate protection. Alongside long hours and dangerous working conditions, many faced additional abuses such as passport confiscation, overcrowded and unsanitary living conditions, poor-quality food, and discriminatory treatment based on job rank.
The report highlights the systemic failures of the Saudi government, particularly the continued practice of the kafala sponsorship system and weak enforcement of labor protections. This regulatory environment, coupled with large subcontracting networks and multinational involvement, created a permissive climate for ongoing exploitation. Amnesty International emphasized that companies operating in Saudi Arabia must undertake rigorous human rights due diligence to prevent abuses, or consider refraining from engaging in such projects altogether.
Amnesty also called on countries of origin, including Bangladesh, India, and Nepal, to hold recruitment agencies accountable and ensure the protection of their nationals abroad. Comprehensive reforms and enforcement of labor laws, alongside dismantling the kafala system, are critical to safeguarding the rights and well-being of migrant workers who are integral to Saudi Arabia’s major infrastructure projects.
