JEDDAH, 14 November 2005 — The Labor Ministry yesterday announced new restrictions on the recruitment of house servants and said recruitment applications would be considered on the basis of family requirements and financial capabilities.
Deputy Labor Minister Ahmad Al-Zamil said the new rules would become effective on Dec. 3. The ministry has put the presence of children and more than one wife and the working or studying of the spouse as conditions for recruitment.
“A Saudi family having one child with a spouse working or studying and having the required financial capabilities will be allowed to recruit a maid,” the Saudi Press Agency quoted Al-Zamil as telling a press conference in Riyadh.
For recruiting a driver only, the spouse or unmarried daughter must be working or the family have school age children. The applicant should have a monthly income of at least SR3,500 for the first recruitment, SR8,000 for the second, SR12,000 for the third and SR20,000 for the fourth. The ministry will decide financial requirements for further recruitment.
For the recruitment of two maids, a family should have at least two children or two wives or parents to take care of. To recruit a second driver, it should have more than one wife, more school age children and unmarried working daughters.
Handicapped, elderly and sick citizens will also be allowed to recruit servants or nurses, provided they produce medical certificates to prove their special situation. “In other cases, the ministry will decide considering specific conditions,” Al-Zamil said. Applicants who are not working in the private or public sectors will have to present bank statements for six months.
The new rules were announced after Labor Minister Ghazi Al-Gosaibi revealed plans to allow recruitment companies to supply temporary house servants required by Saudi families. He said the Council of Ministers approved the establishment of three recruitment companies two months ago. “We at the Labor Ministry wish the owners of existing recruitment offices would become founders of the new companies,” he said.