An alarming number of expat deaths in Bahrain has prompted an investigation into the alleged abuse of migrant workers.

The findings will be detailed in a report which is currently being prepared by the Aldoi Centre for Human and Trade Union Rights, under the umbrella of the Bahrain Human Rights Watch Society (BHRWS).

The report will focus on safety at work, non-payment of salaries, living conditions and even the food that foreign workers eat.

'More than 100 people have died in the last three years in accidents on worksites, with 38 having died last year,' said BHRWS secretary general Faisal Fulad.

'This is a very large number of fatalities considering the size of Bahrain.'

He said the report, which is due to be published in September, would demand a full inquiry into each work-related fatality and punishment for anyone found to be at fault.

'We have seen few, if any, safety standards being followed at construction sites and there is scant regard for workers' lives,' added Fulad.

'Even if there is an accident there is no proper investigation and, more often than not, it is brushed under the carpet.'

Fulad added the report would also focus on the overall health of expat workers, who he said lived in unhealthy conditions and lacked nutritious food.

'This shows in their overall health and they suffer long-term medical problems and complications,' he claimed.

The BHRWS is now commissioning nutritionists to review expat food habits and the calories they consume as part of the study.

'There is growing concern among experts that workers who do not eat well are carrying sickness with them when they return to their home countries,' explained Fulad.

The report will also focus on foreign workers being targeted by vandals, who destroy public property and set fire to tyres and rubbish bins.

'Many workers have been caught up in these senseless acts and have been injured after Molotov cocktails were thrown at them,' said Fulad.

'We are going to recommend instant and immediate action against such people.'

The report is expected to conclude that the saleries foreign workers receive are too low.

'The salaries are too low and even those are not paid on time,' said Fulad.

'The workers spend a lot of their money on food and accommodation and that leaves them with megre savings or none at all.

'That defeats the very purpose of them coming overseas to work.'

Fulad revealed around 50 per cent of the report had already been completed, but it would not be finished for another five months.

'It should be compiled and finished by the end of August and will be released in September to coincide with an international conference we will organise.'-TradeArabia News Service