Defense contractors hire thousands of foreigners. Many are trapped by employment practices banned by the U.S. government. By Katie McQue October … More
Author: katiemcque84
I'm an journalist, based in Dubai.
The Washington Post: Hundreds of Filipino workers stranded on island amid dispute with U.S. contractor
Their employer, KBR, denies Philippine charges that it’s keeping them from leaving the remote American military base on Diego Garcia … More
The Guardian: Britain hands billions to projects linked to labour abuse and climate damage
UK Export Finance used £5.24bn of taxpayer money to fund overseas energy and infrastructure ventures – despite its own review … More
The Washington Post: Denied birth certificates, thousands of children in the UAE go without schooling and health care
Hospitals withhold birth records because of unpaid debts, and the government refuses to register those born out of wedlock By Katie … More
The Washington Post: Smuggled Iranian fuel and secret nighttime transfers: Seafarers recount how it’s done
By Katie McQue January 3, 2022 at 4:01 p.m. EST DUBAI — The secret transfers usually take place at night to … More
The Guardian: Where’s Edelyn? The search for the Filipina maid who vanished in Saudi Arabia
Mired in debt, the mother of three left to work as part of the Gulf’s kafala labour system. She was last heard … More
The Washington Post: The Philippines repatriates dozens of women trafficked to Syria after report about abuses
By Katie McQue July 8, 2021 DUBAI — The Philippine government says it has repatriated all 55 Filipina women who had … More
The Washington Post: Instagram fuels rise in black-market sales of maids into Persian Gulf servitude
May 5, 2021 DUBAI — The advent of Instagram in recent years has helped create an international black market for … More
The Guardian: ‘They left us to die’: UK’s Afghan aid staff in hiding from Taliban
Evacuation of employees, not contractors, ‘splitting hairs’, says HRW, warning of days left to save lives Afghan employees who worked … More
The Washington Post: Foreign seafarers say they were tricked into servitude on Iranian ships
By Katie McQueJanuary 14, 2022 at 3:00 a.m. EST DUBAI — Iranian shipping companies in league with international recruiting firms have … More
Katie McQue 