RIYADH, 30 December 2004 — Prince Sultan, second deputy premier and minister of defense and aviation, said the government will soon publish detailed figures on unemployment among Saudis. He said the Kingdom was committed to abolishing unemployment within a few years.

“The Minister of Labor now has full statistics on the unemployment figures in all parts of the Kingdom. The exact figures will be published soon detailing the numbers of the unemployed wherever they may be. The state is determined to carry on with its efforts to eliminate the word unemployment during the next few years,” Prince Sultan said in a statement to reporters in Al-Ghat province near Riyadh where he opened a number of charity projects.

According to the official figures released by the General Statistics Department of the Ministry of Finance, the unemployment rate in the Kingdom stands at 9.6 percent.

Labor Minister Dr. Ghazi Al-Gosaibi said the only recognized figures are those released by the department. He said the latest figures issued by the department show that the unemployment rate is around 9.6 percent of the total Saudi labor force. This means there are 300,000 unemployed people in the Kingdom.

Dr. Al-Gosaibi has, meanwhile, barred 13 Saudis from recruiting housemaids after it had been established that they abused them and were not paying their salaries and violating other provisions in the contract.

This was disclosed in an exclusive interview to Arab News by Deputy Minister of Labor Ahmad Al-Mansour who warned that any Saudi ill-treating his housemaid would compel the ministry to withdraw all facilities given to him, including recruitment of overseas manpower.

The deputy minister also disclosed that the newly established department in the Ministry of Labor to safeguard the interests of expatriates will have three lawyers to assist them in dealing with their cases.

He said a pamphlet containing the relevant information will also be brought out in several languages. It will explain the various rights to which expatriates are entitled to under the Saudi labor law.

On the progress of Saudization in the industrial sector, Al-Mansour said the Council of Saudi Chambers of Commerce & Industry has estimated the figure at 30 percent. To further tighten the squeeze on the industrial sector, the ministry would not issue visas for administrative or supervisory jobs.

“Even though the rate of Saudization in the industrial sector may be 30 percent, it must be 100 percent for administrative and supervisory posts,” he said, adding that the overall pace of Saudization was still below the target.

The deputy minister pointed out that they were in the process of setting up a program to register all unemployed Saudis. They would be enrolled over a three-month period for a training program to be conducted all over the Kingdom. Once the registration has been completed, the list of the trained Saudis would be forwarded to the respective labor offices for identifying job opportunities for them.

On whether the February deadline regarding the ban on the transfer of sponsorship for unskilled labor would also apply to the skilled categories, the deputy minister said expatriates having degrees or diploma certificates from recognized universities or colleges would still be allowed to transfer their sponsorship provided they have worked for at least two years with their sponsor.

On the change of profession, Al-Mansour said it is admissible in the case of university graduates or those with a diploma from a higher training institute.

Asked about the options available for employees threatened with dismissal if they approach the Labor Office for resolving their disputes, he said he would recommend out-of-court settlement, since the process of litigation is time-consuming. “In the Labor Office, we have a special department where we try to solve the problem between the employer and the employee through negotiations. We prefer labor disputes to be settled amicably outside the labor court to avoid unnecessary delays.”

On the issue of seasonal recruitment during the Haj season, he said only establishments registered and working in the holy places would be allowed to recruit labor for Haj-related services such as sanitary, electrical or mechanical works as well as in slaughter houses or as drivers. “To recruit such seasonal labor, the establishment must produce a certificate from a government agency that it is authorized to recruit seasonal labor.”