Dr. Ali Al-Ghamdi

 

Dr. Saeed Al-Seraihi recently wrote an article titled “Who will protect this weaker section of society” in Okaz daily. He drew attention to the increasing number of  cleaning workers who are being deprived of their rights. This happens not only in the case of male workers but also  of women who work with cleaning agencies in sectors where only women are allowed to work.



When the payment of salaries and other allowances is delayed, cleaning workers generally stop working. It is only then that cleaning companies take steps to address the problem. Their solution is to convince the cleaners to return to work with promises of paying their delayed wages so as to put an end to the foul smell of piled up trash and garbage in the city. That smell is similar to the smell of the corruption of these companies, which deprive these poor workers of their rights by denying and delaying the payment of their meager salaries.



A good example of this is what happened at the rehabilitation center for  people with special needs in Makkah where female cleaning workers went on strike when the company failed to pay their salary on time. This created an embarrassing situation for nearly 100 women inmates at the center. Around 86 cleaning workers in the company were compelled to go on strike when they found that the company's officials would not pay any heed to their repeated demand for the payment of their salaries and other allowances in accordance with their contract. It is worth noting what Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) said in this regard: “Give the laborer his wage before his sweat dries.”



The issue of cleaning workers is an old and complicated one about which I have written more than one article in this newspaper. Several other writers have also dealt with this topic. Prince Amr Al-Faisal delivered a lecture titled “The Culture of Shame” at Jeddah Literary Club several years ago. He said that it was a shame that cleaning workers receive a meager salary and that even that amount was not being paid on time. When my turn came to address the function, I emphasized the fact that cleaning workers were being subjected to great injustice as their salary was very small and quite unsuitable for the work that they do. Speaking on the occasion, the deputy chairman of the Human Rights Commission was also of the same opinion. However, nothing has happened and there has been no increase in the salary of these workers.



Most people blame the cleaning workers for not keeping some streets, neighborhoods and public places clean and tidy. However, they never seem to inquire about the salary given to cleaning workers by these companies, which have contracts worth billions of riyals. When one writer learned that the monthly salary of a cleaner does not normally exceed SR350, he sarcastically said that this amount would not be sufficient for a dinner at a standard restaurant for one of the officials of a cleaning company which hires these poor laborers.  



I read a report by Tawfiq Al-Asmari in Okaz daily that said that citizens living in Jeddah's Jamia District have complained that garbage is piling up because street cleaners were more interested in collecting soft drink cans and scrap metal than collecting and disposing of trash. Some said that these workers were more interested in begging than in doing their jobs, and that when they were asked to remove trash from in front of homes, they demanded money for doing so.



These citizens demanded that mayoralty officials monitor these workers to ensure that they are doing their jobs properly. They also warned about the danger of serious environmental problems caused by uncollected garbage, and urged the authorities to take action against those who were guilty of the dereliction of duty.



Sami Al-Ghamdi, spokesman of Jeddah mayoralty, said that they were keen to respond positively to everything that appeared in print and electronic media and to address the issues concerning the mayoralty in the proper way.  Speaking to Okaz, he said that if any cleaning worker abandoned his job and engaged in collecting empty cans, the mayoralty would take strict penal action against him. He noted that such actions included the deportation of the laborer. Al-Ghamdi also said that there would be regular inspection tours of  mayoralty officials in all districts of the city in order to ensure that no trash or garbage was piled up.



With all respect to the mayoralty officials and the concerned authorities, I would like to point out that the ideal solution for this problem is to ensure the fair treatment of these workers and to put an end to the injustice being meted out to them. For this, the mayoralty should closely monitor the cleaning companies that sign contracts worth billions of riyals and then resort to the use of agents to hire cleaning workers for meager salaries, thus depriving them of their basic rights.



Instead of threatening these laborers with deportation, the mayoralty must ensure that these workers are being paid a reasonable salary suitable to their work and that they are being given proper accommodation and other facilities. If the mayoralty takes such steps, there would be a qualitative change in the attitude of these workers and they would concentrate on performing their jobs properly.

 — Dr. Ali Al-Ghamdi is a former Saudi diplomat who specializes in Southeast Asian affairs. He can be reached at algham@hotmail.com