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“Treated Like Objects”: Worker In Dubai Sparks Reactions After Exposing Living Conditions
A video has gone viral for exposing the dark side of Dubai, United Arab Emirates (UAE), shedding light on the poor living conditions of thousands of workers.
The video, shared by @FurkanGozukara on X, begins with a man saying, “Come with me as I explore the hidden side of Dubai that you never knew existed.”
The man filmed several laborers being dropped off at their building after a long day’s work.
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Highlights
- A viral video reveals Dubai residential buildings with thousands of workers living in cramped rooms.
- Tanveer, an AC technician, shares a tiny room with five others, highlighting harsh conditions faced by 5,000 workers per complex.
- Human Rights Watch reports widespread human rights violations in the UAE, including wage theft and passport confiscation.
A content creator has exposed the harsh living conditions faced by many workers in Dubai
Image credits: Getty Images/Unsplash
“I’m following this fella to some labor camps so I can go to his house and see how these people live,” the content creator continues.
The video then cuts to a worker named Tanveer, an AC technician, who showcases his living conditions. As shown in the clip, Tanveer shares a small room without a private bathroom with five people.
“Is this one yours?” the man behind the camera asks, pointing to one of the bunk beds. “Oh, okay.”
Image credits: Lloyd Alozie/Unsplash
The man shows that Tanveer has a fan and an AC, which are necessary for summer temperatures that can reportedly reach 50°C (122°F).
Tanveer explains that there are 5,000 people living in similar precarious conditions in each complex.
The content creator then shows the public toilet, which Tanveer describes as an “all building toilet.”
The content creator followed one laborer to the small room he shares with five other people
Image credits: Albert Vinas/Unsplash
“If you look down there, you can see how many buildings there are,” the content creator says, capturing “blocks and blocks” of buildings where workers live. “Goes on forever, doesn’t it?”
At the end of the video, the man announces that he has received several donations for the workers in the block.
“So thanks to the help of a few people that donated and my good friend Hussein, we managed to source food packs for some of the locals that lived here,” he says. “We’ve got 150 boxes and we’re struggling to get people in line.”
Image credits: Discover Saeed
The man concludes the video by stressing the importance of being aware of one’s privileges, sharing, “It’s encounters like these that truly make you appreciate what you’ve been given.”
The video sparked hundreds of reactions, with one viewer writing, “Dubai – Double Life, Double Standards.”
A separate user highlighted the “hypocrisy” and inequality in residents’ living conditions, stating, “While all stuck tourists (who have money) get all expenses paid by the Dubai government, these people live in horrible conditions with an insanely low pay.”
“And never shown by paid influencers,” @FurkanGozukara replied.
“Come with me to explore the hidden side of Dubai that you never knew existed,” the man says in the viral video
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“Yup this is exactly what they don’t want you to see, the ugliness. They treat the labor class like sh*t. Heck they treat all but the white skinned like 3rd class citizens,” shared someone else.
One person commented, “Go to section 8 housing in Baltimore. Looks similar but no AC.”
“These people are lucky to have a job. Their seller supports their whole family back in India,” another viewer shared.
Someone else said the city was “built on sl*very and low wages.”
Image credits: king.leopard7
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Dubai has emerged as a magnet for influencers, entrepreneurs, and millionaires, who are drawn by its tax-free income policies and luxury lifestyle.
The city is reportedly home to four million residents, about 90% of whom were not born in the UAE.
Khalid Ibrahim, Executive Director for Gulf Centre for Human Rights (GC4HR), previously told Bored Panda that the country ranks among the worst in terms of human rights.
Ibrahim said one of his colleagues was detained for protesting human rights violations and was sentenced to 10 years in prison.
The United Arab Emirates (UAE) ranks among the worst countries in terms of human rights
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Image credits: CassoWAristos
On their website, the human rights organization denounces “unlawful surveillance of private communications of human rights defenders” and states that non-citizens face the risk of deportation if they participate in online human rights advocacy.
A recent report by Human Rights Watch states that migrant workers in the UAE “face widespread ab*ses and exposure to dangerous heat-related health risks.”
These include wage theft, illegal recruitment fees, and passport confiscation, “which leave workers in situations that may amount to forced labor.”
Image credits: king.leopard7
Employers hold disproportionate control over migrant workers under the kafala (sponsorship) system, preventing them from changing jobs without the employer’s consent, according to the organization.
Additionally, employers can file false “absconding” charges when laborers leave to escape poor working conditions, causing them to risk detention and deportation.
@king.leopard7 The hidden side of Dubai! #modernslavery♬ som original – King Leopard 🐆
Image credits: MalaAurel93085
Migrant workers play an indispensable role in the UAE workforce, yet the country still does not have a non-discriminatory minimum wage.
According to the report, domestic workers are even more vulnerable, being confined to homes or agency offices and subjected to wage theft and verbal, physical, and s*xual violence by employers.
Many migrant workers in the UAE have their passports confiscated, Human Rights Watch says
Image credits: Brent Stirton/Getty Images
Image credits: Google Maps
In 2024, a TikToker who goes by “Anna” called Dubai “the worst place I’ve ever lived,” sharing that she would never “forget the image of people ordering gold-covered steaks while immigrants worked in 43C heat right outside the window.”
“Animals, women, immigrants, and everybody else except rich men are treated like objects. Literal hell,” Anna denounced in a viral post.
The viral video ignited many reactions about workers’ living conditions in Dubai
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What do you think ?
LakotaWolf (she/her) 8 hours ago
It's amazing how many people try to justify abhorrent living conditions by saying "this could be heaven for these people!" and "it's so much better than where they came from!" as if that makes it acceptable. As if that makes it okay to cram 5 people into a room the size of the average Panda's closet and for them to not even have access to a private toilet or running water in their room. Yes, they have jobs. They aren't literal "sláves". No master is whipping them. No one is forcing them to do anything. But that doesn't make it okay for the fat cat Saudi "princes" and rich tourists to trod all over these people, figuratively speaking. They still live in abhorrent conditions, even if they might be "better" than their homeland's conditions.
Roman Arendt 8 hours ago
Since a lot of "employers" take passports and documentation from their "employees" as soon as they arrive, most of what happens after could be considered force.
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CP 8 hours ago
All that money to build all that stuff, but none for the people that did the work. That is capitalism! The system is broken and needs to be discarded.
pelemele 8 hours ago (edited)
Nothing excuses or justifies the treatment these people endure and their very poor working conditions. And by the way, yes, in the past, without capitalism, everything was much fairer and easier. A brief historical reminder: Antiquity (Mesopotamia, Egypt, Greece, Rome): The majority of workers were slaves. Free artisans were rare and organized themselves into highly hierarchical guilds. Child labor was widespread. Middle Ages in Europe (5th-15th centuries): Feudal system: the vast majority of workers were serfs, literally belonging to their lord, who also owned the land. Furthermore, serfs had to pay taxes in kind on salt and give a portion of their harvest to their lord. They also had to work for free several days a week. In cities, starting in the 12th century, guilds of artisans organized themselves to guarantee a certain level of security regarding wages, training, and rights. Child labor was common. All revolts were suppressed with extreme brutality. You can also find out about the conditions under which the Great Wall of China was built.
Load More Replies...
Lee Gilliland 1 hour ago
Hate to tell you this, America, but if you live in a large city and your waiter is sending money home he is likely living in a one-bedroom condo with three others.
LakotaWolf (she/her) 8 hours ago
It's amazing how many people try to justify abhorrent living conditions by saying "this could be heaven for these people!" and "it's so much better than where they came from!" as if that makes it acceptable. As if that makes it okay to cram 5 people into a room the size of the average Panda's closet and for them to not even have access to a private toilet or running water in their room. Yes, they have jobs. They aren't literal "sláves". No master is whipping them. No one is forcing them to do anything. But that doesn't make it okay for the fat cat Saudi "princes" and rich tourists to trod all over these people, figuratively speaking. They still live in abhorrent conditions, even if they might be "better" than their homeland's conditions.
Roman Arendt 8 hours ago
Since a lot of "employers" take passports and documentation from their "employees" as soon as they arrive, most of what happens after could be considered force.
Load More Replies... CP 8 hours ago
All that money to build all that stuff, but none for the people that did the work. That is capitalism! The system is broken and needs to be discarded.
pelemele 8 hours ago (edited)
Nothing excuses or justifies the treatment these people endure and their very poor working conditions. And by the way, yes, in the past, without capitalism, everything was much fairer and easier. A brief historical reminder: Antiquity (Mesopotamia, Egypt, Greece, Rome): The majority of workers were slaves. Free artisans were rare and organized themselves into highly hierarchical guilds. Child labor was widespread. Middle Ages in Europe (5th-15th centuries): Feudal system: the vast majority of workers were serfs, literally belonging to their lord, who also owned the land. Furthermore, serfs had to pay taxes in kind on salt and give a portion of their harvest to their lord. They also had to work for free several days a week. In cities, starting in the 12th century, guilds of artisans organized themselves to guarantee a certain level of security regarding wages, training, and rights. Child labor was common. All revolts were suppressed with extreme brutality. You can also find out about the conditions under which the Great Wall of China was built.
Load More Replies... Lee Gilliland 1 hour ago
Hate to tell you this, America, but if you live in a large city and your waiter is sending money home he is likely living in a one-bedroom condo with three others.
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