The company is believed to have appointed them as assistant saleswomen at school canteens for a monthly wage of around SR500. The company allegedly made the appointments as a ploy to dodge Saudization targets under the Nitaqat program, Al-Eqtisadiah daily reported on Wednesday.

According to their contracts, the workers would get paid only for working days and are not entitled to any salary or allowances for weekends and other holidays. The contract also does not mention anything about their rights. There is a clause in the contract stating that they need to work only two hours daily, but they say their actual work hours are about eight. The copy of contract given to the women was not signed by the employer.

The saleswomen complained that the company wants to dodge the Nitaqat targets by exploiting them. When contacted by the newspaper, the company declined to comment on the matter.

A saleswoman who has been working with the company for several years said her employer deducts SR45 toward insurance premium from her salary, which is only SR500 a month. “I have also not been paid for my weekly offs and other holidays, including the National Day. We are forced to work for nearly eight hours from 6 a.m. daily,” she said, urging the authorities to take steps to ensure them the minimum salary of SR3,000 as per the royal decree issued a few months ago.

Another saleswoman said she was struggling to make ends meet. “I am working at a canteen run by the catering company for a monthly salary of SR500. I managed to earn another SR100 by preparing and serving coffee and tea to a group of teachers and another SR300 by taking care of three children,” she said.

Lawyer Ahmad Al-Maliki said the workers should approach the concerned authorities to get justice as well as force the company to fulfill its obligations toward its employees. He also urged the Ministry of Labor to intensify monitoring and inspections of workplaces to find out whether employers are being lax in fulfilling their responsibilities toward their employees.