Page 301 - Aamir Rehman - Dubai & Co Global Strategies for Doing Business in the Gulf States-McGraw-Hill (2007)

Enabled Organization: Setting Up for Success 283

Thankfully, public-sector and business leaders across the region
are embracing this principle and encouraging women to rise in the
ranks. As discussed earlier in the book, the UAE’s minister of
economy is a woman, and she is a role model for many women in
the region. More women are entering local universities than men,
and female graduates are a critical component of the local work-
force. Multinationals should capitalize on these trends and take
all steps needed to ensure that the local organization and line man-
agers provide female staff equal access to leadership roles and
promotions.
Labor practices and the rights of low-income workers in the
Gulf is a matter of concern to many principle-driven organizations
worldwide. Human Rights Watch, for example, published a report
in 2006 entitled “Building Towers, Cheating Workers,” 12 which
detailed unjust—and illegal—practices in the UAE construction
industry such as not paying workers for months on end. Visitors to
Dubai need only take a taxi ride during the day to see workers toil-
ing in sweltering heat in order to enable the massive real estate
boom and development spree. There are labor laws on the books to
protect workers’ rights, yet adherence and enforcement of these
laws have not been consistent. Labor conditions in construction and
other sectors are—and should be—a serious ethical concern for
firms and investors. While most multinationals are not directly
engaged in the sectors most known for labor abuses, they should
nonetheless make known their concerns about workers’ rights to
local contractors and service providers whom they engage. Would
any firm want its GCC office to be built through exploitative labor
practices? Even worse, would they want that known worldwide?
Taking an ethical stance early and proactively can both reflect the
firm’s values and engender awareness and change within the
broader market.
Business in the Gulf offers an attractive and growing commer-
cial opportunity. In pursuing this opportunity, global firms must
retain the robust quality, process, and people management princi-
ples that have made them successful worldwide. Compromising a
global reputation for a regional business is simply not an option,
and standards must always be upheld. Besides being the right thing
to do, it makes business sense.