JEDDAH, 27 August 2007 — Labor Minister Dr. Ghazi Al-Gosaibi yesterday urged employers to take necessary precautions to ensure the safety of their workers and protect their health. “Taking such measures is the duty of employers in accordance with the Labor Law,” he said in a statement carried by the Saudi Press Agency.
The Labor Law bans employers from asking Saudi, as well as non-Saudi, employees to work under circumstances that endanger their health, he said.
The minister was commenting on press reports on private sector employees working in the scorching sun during summer.
Article 122 of the Labor Law insists that all employers must take necessary precautions to protect their employees from work-related dangers and diseases. They must provide protection to workers free of charge and should not impose any financial burden on workers for this purpose. In accordance with the law, workers must adopt safety means and measures and follow instructions related to protecting them from dangers and diseases.
Gosaibi said the ministry would soon issue guidelines regarding health, safety and protection of workers.
According to Article 121 of the law, employers have to keep their work places hygienic and clean in accordance with the principles set by the labor minister. These principles emphasize the need for providing protection to workers exposed to harmful heat whether from natural or industrial sources.
Meanwhile, Abdul Wahid Al-Humaid, deputy labor minister for planning and development, said the number of foreign recruitment visas issued by the ministry in the month of Jamad Al-Thani (June-July) increased by 50.02 percent compared to visas issued in the same month last year.
The tremendous increase in recruitment visas comes in response to the growing demand for skilled foreign manpower to carry out new industrial, educational and real estate projects in various parts of the country and implement the recently launched mega-economic cities in Rabigh, Hail, Madinah and Jizan.
During the reporting period, the ministry issued 117,766 visas through the labor offices across the country. The lion’s share of visas (56.45 percent) came from offices in Riyadh (46,831), Jeddah (9,954) and Dammam (9,699) while the rest were issued by offices in other parts of the country.
Al-Humaid said there were substantial increase in visas issued for skilled professions such as engineers. Of the total visas issued during the month, 48.42 percent were for assistant engineers and 20.57 percent were given for service professions. Some 5,503 visas were issued for construction workers and 396 visas for civil engineers.
Bangladeshis were the largest beneficiaries of the new labor visas as they received 23.60 percent of these visas. Indians were second, receiving 18.61 percent visas while Egyptians got 14.46 percent, Filipinos 11.96 percent and Pakistanis 11.01 percent. Workers in 13 countries received more visas during the month, the deputy minister said.
Bangladeshis received 27,791 visas in Jamad Al-Thani 1428 compared to 14,932 visas during the same month last year. There was a decrease in visas issued to Turkey, South Africa and China, the report said.
Visas issued for cooks, hotel suppliers, male nurses and ordinary laborers fell compared to the same month last year.
