‘Aramco is selling our sweat and blood’: workers in World Cup sponsor’s supply chain faced safety risks, report finds

Lying in a hospital bed in Saudi Arabia, his legs encased in plaster casts, Shrawan Shah Rauniyar clung to the hope that at least he would be fairly compensated. After all, when his legs were crushed under a giant metal beam that fell off a forklift, he was working on a project belonging to one of the most profitable companies in the world: Saudi Aramco. Rauniyar, a migrant worker from Nepal, was not employed directly by the state-owned energy company, but like tens of thousands of other migrant workers in the Gulf kingdom, he worked for a small labour supply company, which sent him to work on a project managed by the Italian firm Saipem, which in turn was contracted to Aramco. When staff from Saipem came to visit him in hospital, they brought him some flowers, chocolates and a blunt message. “Don’t ask us about compensation. We don’t know about it. You’re a contract worker for us. Talk to your employer,” Rauniyar alleges. But the labour supply company appeared in a hurry to wash its hands of him. Men from the company came to threaten Rauniyar in hospital, he says. “Go home. Otherwise, we’ll kill you. We’ll kick you out on the street. Then who will give you food and shelter?” they allegedly told him. Rauniyar refused to give in and demanded the compensation he was entitled to in his contract and under Saudi law, but less than three weeks after the accident, he claims staff from the labour supply company “forcefully” took him to the airport and put him on a plane back to Nepal. Saipem confirmed Rauniyar was injured and said it “ensured full medical assistance” for him. Rauniyar believes some of the responsibility for his fate lies with Aramco. “I get enraged thinking about Aramco. Since it is taking workers from other companies, shouldn’t they pay attention to them? It’s their responsibility, too,” he says. “Aramco has become rich selling our sweat and blood.” View image in fullscreen Aramco is one of the wealthiest, most profitable and influential corporations in the world. Photograph: Ahmed Jadallah/Reuters Rauniyar’s story is one of 23 cases of alleged labour rights abuses among workers employed by Aramco’s contractors and subcontractors in Saudi Arabia documented in a report by the human rights group FairSquare. Based on these allegations, the report finds that migrant workers in Aramco’s supply chain “are exposed to serious safety and health risks, and face significant challenges in claiming compensation in the event of injury or death”. Workers interviewed by FairSquare alleged they also endured grave labour rights violations, which included exposure to extreme heat, work shifts of up to 19 hours and being put up in what the rights group calls “slum housing”. FairSquare’s director, Nick McGeehan, said: “Aramco obviously has a responsibility to protect these workers, but it also has tremendous influence to set standards that flow down its supply chain to hundreds of thousands of workers across Saudi Arabia. The neglect that we see in its supply chain indicates that it takes migrant worker protection no more seriously than the Saudi state.” The findings are particularly striking given that Aramco is one of the wealthiest, most profitable and influential corporations in the world. As Saudi Arabia’s national oil company, it provides about two-thirds of the government’s revenue. It is the fourth largest company in the world by revenue, with a market value of about $1.7tn (£1.3tn) – roughly the same as the next five energy companies combined. Aramco is not just the economic engine of Saudi Arabia but also plays a leading role in the kingdom’s efforts to rebrand itself on the global stage, notably through sports, where, as one of Fifa’s main sponsors, its name will be plastered all over this summer’s World Cup. Aramco employs more than 76,000 people, but this figure hides a far larger number of workers employed through a long and complex chain of thousands of contractors and subcontractors. These workers, who are overwhelmingly migrant labourers from south Asia, may not show up in Aramco’s annual reports but they do the often difficult and dangerous work that drives its profits, from constructing its facilities to transporting its petrol. Such an extensive labour supply chain does not exempt Aramco from its responsibilities to its entire workforce. The UN’s Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights require companies to prevent human rights abuses “throughout their operations”. Aramco appears to accept this, stating online: “Aramco is committed to supporting and empowering our workforce and the communities where we operate. The safety and wellbeing of our employees, their dependents, and our company’s contractors is paramount to our strategy and operations.” View image in fullscreen A computer-generated image of the Aramco Stadium, the first new venue to be developed for the 2034 football World Cup. As a majority state-owned company, the UN’s guiding principles put additional responsibilities on the Saud