UAE construction workers launch historic strike

Laborers of the United Arab Emirates-based construction giant Arabtec are staging a strike to express discontent over their low salaries.

Arabtec issued a statement saying that a number of workers in Dubai and Abu Dhabi observed the strike for a second day on Monday.

The workers, who are demanding that the company raise their wages, stayed in their camps on Sunday and Monday.

Most construction workers in the UAE are from South Asia and earn about $218 a month on average.

Arabtec, which is involved in mega projects like the Louvre Abu Dhabi, said it was not affected by the labor strike.

Labor protests are not common in Persian Gulf Arab states, where construction workers are often housed in crowded labor camps.

In the past, the UAE arrested strikers, but now there are worries of wider protests in the Persian Gulf country.