Employees of the US defence contractor V2X Inc on military bases in Kuwait have criticised the company for providing inadequate bunker facilities and reducing their pay, while offering limited communication about safety and evacuation procedures during Iranian missile attacks across the Gulf region.
Speaking to the Guardian, three V2X workers at Camp Arifjan and Camp Buehring said they were assigned inferior shelters compared to military personnel, with some described as above-ground concrete tunnels with open ends or dark, barely ventilated rooms. One worker said they received no instructions from the company on what to do if their base was hit or how to evacuate.
Two American contractors alleged that US military personnel had been evacuated in recent weeks, leaving the bases relatively empty, while contractors remained. They claimed the evacuation seemed designed to minimise military casualties, questioning whether they were considered expendable. Under Kuwait's labour laws, contractors require an exit permit signed by their employer to leave the country, risking arrest for 'absconding' if they leave without permission.
The workers also reported that the company reduced their paid hours from 12 to eight per day following base closures during the attacks, cutting overtime pay. They described the situation as traumatic, with one worker saying the lack of communication and planning had caused anxiety and sleeplessness.
V2X Inc was formed in July 2022 after a $2.1bn merger and holds a LOGCAP V contract to provide logistics and base operations support for US forces in Kuwait. The Guardian requested comment from V2X but did not receive a response by press time.
