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Construction companies struggle to entice Indian workers to UAE(Gulf News Via Thomson Dialog NewsEdge)Dubai: Contracting companies are increasingly finding Indian workers turning down construction job offers because salaries here are too low while wages in India are rising. One of the companies' officials and many labour agents have said it is increasingly difficult to convince Indian professionals and labourers to work in the UAE, because salaries here are stagnant against rising inflation, while the Indian economy is booming. They said the construction sector is suffering the most. Although it is booming, companies are not increasing wages, partly because of increased fees for labour permits, now at about Dh6,000 a piece. One company said it is being forced to look for workers from isolated Nepalese villages. "There's a lot of demand for labourers because projects here are coming up. But at the same time there's a lot of construction growth in India, and their salaries are increasing," said a senior engineer for the contracting company. "Workers aren't willing to come for Dh200 extra, but a harsh life." Rashid Kamaal, manager of Asia-Gulf Recruitment Services, said the UAE and India were experiencing a construction boom, but people were often offered higher salaries in India. He said even if salaries were less in India, many agents demanded workers pay thousands in transaction costs, effectively making their salaries less, with the added burden of separation from family. Kamaal warned salaries had to increase and workers had to be treated better. "Otherwise I fear we'll have a true labour shortage." In India, agents said employers were searching villages, not cities, for cheap labour, and Abbas Ali Mirza, partner in Peloitte & Touche, an auditing and consultancy firm, said professionals did not think the Gulf was a lucrative market any more. "The International Monetary Fund and the World Bank predicted India to be the fourth largest economy by 2020. People do not want to miss out on the opportunities offered," he said. Some labour agents said there was not a shortage of Indian workers, but an increasing refusal to pay high transaction fees to unscrupulous agents. "Agents have to charge because labour permit fees are high. Companies pressure us to find the cheapest worker, willing to take the least salary and pay the most to come here," one agent said. While he said many workers were choosing to "live off bread and onions in their homeland than come here and work one year for free," many others were still willing to be exploited. "Every worker you see come through the airport is another human being who is desperate enough to leave their homeland and face the life of an immigrant to make money." |