RIYADH: The Ministry of Labor found jobs for 37,494 Saudis in the private sector over the first 10 months of 2009, according to a report on Friday from the Saudi Press Agency, citing a ministry report.
“The Ministry of Labor is implementing a 25-year strategy aimed at providing maximum employment opportunities to Saudis by developing the job market for Saudis and thus reducing unemployment to a minimum in line with the Council of Ministers’ Order No. 20 dated June 27, 2009. The Cabinet order is also intended to raise the competitiveness of the Saudi work force and the national economy,” the report said.
The ministry reported a 25 percent reduction in work visas issued in that period of time compared to 2008. “The ministry approved 745,912 visas over the first nine months last year against 1,001,520 workers’ visas issued in the same period in the previous year,” the report said.
In order to speed up the Saudization process, a number of training programs were conducted during the summer vacation in which 66,815 youths participated compared to 59,714 in 2008, an increase of 11.89 percent.
“With the aim of giving greater opportunities to Saudis with special needs the ministry issued an order for the allocation of 25 percent of jobs in private establishments to the disabled,” the report said. The report also pointed out the efforts made by the ministry for the increased participation of women in the job market.
“The ministry will shortly open two offices exclusively for women in Madinah and Asir provinces to add to the three existing offices in Riyadh, Jeddah and Makkah,” the report said.
The total number of job permits issued in the period between January and November stood at 3,018,303, the report said.
The ministry will shortly finalize the statutes for unified recruitment companies to undertake the supply of foreign manpower with the aim of streamlining and simplifying recruitment operations.
The ministry also organized a number of seminars and workshops to improve the quality of service offered by its employees. Labor Minister Ghazi Al-Gosaibi chaired the first annual conference of the directors of Labor Offices in the Kingdom held in Jeddah to discuss labor import procedures. Another conference in Riyadh discussed the reality and objective of Saudization.
The Ministry of Labor has instituted the Prince Naif Award for Saudization to encourage private firms to employ Saudis in large numbers. The winners of the award will be decided after the ongoing evaluation of the work force in private companies is completed, the report said. Another prize, the King Abdullah Prize for Training, is in the works with the aim of encouraging the private sector to provide effective training to Saudis and enhance the efficiency of the national work force. The ministry also provides online services for the registration of companies with the ministry, changes in company data, number of vacant jobs available for Saudis in a company and the details about the number of Saudi and non-Saudi employees in a company. The ministry will shortly establish an online portal with the Interior Ministry to speed up visa applications, exit and re-entry of workers, work permits, changes of profession etc.
The report said the total number of disputes settled by the Preliminary Labor Disputes Settlement Commission was 6,441 while the Higher Labor Dispute Commission settled 1,105 cases in the first nine months of the year. The ministry also ordered the setting up of dispute commissions in the Kingdom’s 13 provinces as well as new higher commissions in Jeddah and the Eastern Province.
