The phenomenon of the illegal employment of under-aged children in car repair workshops has resurfaced in Jeddah where children work long hours doing heavy and menial jobs in return for meager wages.

A field tour found children under 14 working in the numerous workshops dotting Jeddah complaining about the harsh conditions in which they are forced to work. “We work on heavy machines throughout the day from 8 in the morning to 7 in the evening all days of the week without a single holiday,” Muhammad, a 12 year-old boy of Somali nationality said. “If we hadn’t been so poor we wouldn’t be working here for a weekly payment of only SR150,” he added.

Ali, another child of 14 from Chad working in a car workshop as a mechanic said, “We are pleading to anyone who can help us to let us play and enjoy our childhood like other children,” adding “I am forced to work in this workshop for long hours without any rest just to provide for my family. But these workshops must be strictly monitored and controls tightened around them.”

Sixteen-year-old Jebreal, also a Chadian national, said that his family and he could not get a residency card and so he was forced to work such jobs as he didn’t have educational certificates.

“I am forced to work in these jobs because my family is very poor. For three years now I have been working to support my family, moving from one workshop to another getting a maximum pay of SR150,” he said. “Look around you and see the large number of boys and small children working in this area,” said Jebreal.

Some of the older men in the area expressed their wonder and sadness at the plight of these kids. Waheed Al-Zahrani demanded that the authorities move quickly to organize the labor market, and impose heavy fines on the workshops’ owners who employ children.

“This is a crime against humanity,” said Al-Zahrani.

Saleh Al-Sulami said the kids are being exploited because they are young and poor. “Some of them are made to do illegal work like drug trafficking or burglary. They have a hard life and the majority of them do not possess a national identity,” he said. Sometimes they don’t know where they live or even their name, he added.

Meanwhile, Abu Ahmed a workshop owner said, “We don’t force these children to work. They come here of their own accord asking for work to support their families.”

In fact, he thought he was doing them a good turn by offering paid work which is better than begging or stealing.

Sadiq Sahib, another car workshop owner said, “Not all the owners behave the same way toward these kids. Some of them are very kind while others stress the boys with heavy work making them do tasks beyond their abilities.”

He said he himself employs some of the kids to do minor jobs to allow them to earn a decent living. “It is better they work with me than be exposed to the evils of the world outside,” he said. “I know how badly they need a daily income just to get three square meals a day let alone their other needs,” he added.