Originally Posted by
UKRob
The post on migrant workers struck a chord with me - Dubai has an indigenous population of about 400k but a regular population of about 1.3million - the vast majority of the guest workers are from the Indian sub-continent working in construction and general labouring roles. They too are housed in compounds with their own shops because they could not possibly afford normal prices for accommodation and other necessities. Nonetheless, they take the work because it pays incomparably better than they could expect at home.
By the way, when the temperature starts creeping up there, the whole peninsula could be classed as a sweatshop.