Family of worker killed on Saudi World Cup site still waiting for compensation a year on | Global development
When Mohammed Arshad died during the construction of the first new stadium for the 2034 World Cup in Saudi Arabia, Belgian multinational construction company Besix, one of the main stadium contractors, promised to take immediate steps to ensure that all end-of-service and insurance payments were “made in a timely and respectful manner”.
Almost a year later, Arshad’s family says they have yet to receive either of them.
Arshad’s death was the first known death of a migrant worker linked to the 2034 World Cup and came after Fifa was heavily criticized for allowing the Gulf kingdom to host the tournament.
Human rights groups have warned that there could be thousands of unexplained deaths of migrant workers linked to the World Cup and other large-scale construction projects in Saudi Arabia. In its World Cup bid, Saudi Arabia has pledged to build 11 new stadiums and renovate four for the 2034 tournament.
Arshad died on March 12, 2025, while working on a high platform at Aramco Stadium in the eastern city of Al Khobar. The platform suddenly tilted and Arshad, who was not anchored to it, was thrown to the ground. He later died in hospital, leaving his wife and three young sons in Pakistan.
Under Saudi law, Arshad’s family is entitled to a salary compensation Potentially worth £63,250 for his death. They are also entitled to receive back pay and end-of-service benefits.
His family, who lives in Mansehra district in northern Islamabad, says the only money they received came from voluntary donations from Arshad’s colleagues and stakeholders working on the project, funded by Besix.
In response to a request for comment, Besix told the Guardian that end-of-service benefits had been transferred to the Overseas Pakistanis Foundation and should be paid shortly after the family submitted the necessary documentation. The company said it was also in contact with the family and was assisting them in completing the necessary documentation for the insurance payment – death benefit.
Local politician and Arshad’s friend Sardar Manzoor says the family should not have waited this long to receive compensation. “Arshad was like a brother to me, so I don’t want his children to suffer.” He says many people from the region go to the Gulf to work. “Two or three people from each family. Their money is the only thing that keeps the economy going.”
The family’s long delay appears to show how difficult it is for the families of deceased migrant workers in Saudi Arabia to negotiate the bureaucratic process to receive compensation or even know what rights they are entitled to.
James Lynch, director of human rights group FairSquare, said: “This horrific case sadly symbolizes what many families of migrant workers who die in Saudi Arabia are going through. It shows the huge obstacles they face when trying to get the compensation they are legally entitled to in the event of a work injury.”
Human rights groups have previously highlighted the “long and burdensome” process families face to receive compensation and documented several cases where families received little or no compensation.
Lynch called on FIFA to publicly demand compensation for the families of workers killed on projects linked to the tournament, saying: “Fifa recklessly awarded the World Cup to Saudi Arabia after a sham human rights assessment process. This means they cannot escape responsibility for the massive construction program that will result.”
