The strike was called as they have been asked to charge very low prices, the barbers said, adding that the directives fail to take into consideration the prices of apparatus, such as disposable blades, that the municipality asks them to buy, Al-Riyadh newspaper reported on Saturday. Ishteyaq Muhammad, an Asian barber, said the new prices are not feasible. “We would be generating very little income.  The prices fixed by the municipality are very low and hardly cover the costs of equipment we use, and do not even take into consideration the costs of rent, salaries, insurance and utility bills,” he added.

A Saudi owner of a barbershop said he is surprised that the municipality has approved prices that were common 20 years ago. “The municipality’s decision fails to take into consideration inflationary pressures. The costs of items that we use, especially the disposable ones, have gone up lately,” he added.

He also said the new pricing has forced many barbershops to close. “There will be no barbers in Al-Qwaih until this issue is resolved,” he added.

Barbers want to charge SR10 for a haircut and SR8 for a shave instead of the municipality’s SR6 for a haircut and SR4 for a shave, which were rates fixed more than 20 years ago.