RIYADH, 11 July — Saudi Arabia’s decision to suspend work permits of foreigners in 22 professions is seen as a major strategic step toward Saudization of the private sector, where Saudi manpower constitute only four percent of the total workforce. The move comes in line with a plan to employ 817,300 Saudis during the current seventh Five Year Plan (2000-2005).
The latest government move will affect expatriates in general as they are holding positions in industrial, automobile, tourism and banking sectors; said a group of diplomats, recruiting agents and workers. A majority of jobs in the construction sector is also held by expats. They also man thousands of offices across the Kingdom providing Haj and Umrah services.
Referring to the move to reserve 22 professions for Saudis, Raymond Balatbat, vice consul at the Phlippine Embassy, said that "we are not alarmed by the news because it is the ongoing plan of the Saudi government. But, we have to inform Manila about the new move, which will force a large number of Filipino workers to go back to their country."
Saudi Arabia, he said, has been home to over 800,000 OCWs out of a total of nearly seven million foreign workers.
On the question of how the government will enforce its decision to Saudize these professions, a Pakistani worker, Kalam Sikandar, said that this was not possible. "Companies and workers will play tricks and get their professions changed as has happened in the past", said Sikandar, who has been working for the last 15 years in Saudi Arabia. The situation also goes from bad to worse as Saudis seeking employment won’t stick to particular jobs, he said.
Only a small number of Saudis are working in certain sectors. A study conducted by the Arriyadh Development Authority (ADA) shows that Saudis comprise only 3.3 percent in the construction, 2.2 in the manufacturing, 8.1 percent in trade, 6.8 percent in services and 5.2 percent in the business sectors in Riyadh. These figures, however, have improved a little bit over the years. But by contrast, the share of Saudis in public sector stands at 87 percent. Asked if there will be trend toward change of profession by those expat workers affected by the government’s decision, some general service agents said it will be a difficult option, since each such change in the professional status has to be backed up by appropriate academic qualification and the degree certificate to be attested by the embassy concerned for its authenticity. But some say that there have been plenty of fake degrees and attestation by the embassies are not a problem.
Another Asian diplomat, however, spoke about his own contention on the condition of anonymity, saying that "the Kingdom will need expat workers for several years, even though most of the infrastructure is in place, as it still needed to be operated and maintained". This argument has been supported by another study carried out by two Saudi academecians, Dr. Muhammad ibn Abdullah Al-Ghaith and Mansour ibn Abdul Aziz Al-Mashooq on behalf of the Institute of Public Administration.
The study says that the country will still need to hire expatriate labor for decades to come. They, however, have listed 17 reasons hindering the employment of Saudis in the private sector. Topping their list was a lack of English language ability in addition to lower salaries and fewer incentives given by the private sector. But these problems seem to be addressed now by the Manpower Development Fund.
Asked about his reaction to the Saudi government’s plan to expand the list of professions reserved for Saudis, an Indian worker Anwar Sharif, said that he and his friends are scared and are seeking immigration to Canada, Australia or New Zealand.
On the contrary, young Saudis seeking employment argue that the recruitment practices of private sector employers have added to the existing constraints faced by them, while hunting for jobs in private companies. These employers have naturally tended toward the recruitment of foreign workers, whose qualifications, training, operating flexibility and wage demands more closely matched their own requirements and profitability, they said.
