Five-day week: Sparks fly over contractor’s remark

Saudis don’t deserve an extra day-off, a Saudi businessman claimed as a response to the Ministry of Labor’s proposal to reduce the workdays in the private sector.
The man, a contracting company owner, appeared on the controversial talk show “8 o’clock with Dawood” when he also said only non-Saudis would benefit from the working hours cut.
“Saudis should first fulfill the daily eight hours before we give them one more day off. Currently, they only work three hours a day,” said Abdullah Al-Malghouth.
The host and the ministry official rejected Al-Malghouth’s accusations.
Dawood Al-Shirian, the host, said this stereotype about Saudis should end. It is wrong to think that no Saudi employee is committed to his job.
Ahmad Al-Humaidan, undersecretary for labor affairs at the Labor Ministry, wondered why we should not let non-Saudis benefit from developing the working environment.
“What Al-Malghouth said is totally wrong. Production has nothing to do with nationalities and only with working environment. The new regulations for companies can improve the quality of production,” he said.
Al-Humaidan, who is also the secretary of the National Dialogue Center, said the ministry was currently conducting dialogues with both employers and employees to better understand how the decision, when approved, would affect them.
He said his administration conducted studies on the matter and would submit the results to Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah for approval.
Abdulrahman Al-Zamil, the representative of business in the national dialogue, said one hour should be added to the weekdays to compensate for the sixth day.
Al-Zamil said it was the first time ever the Ministry of Labor discussed with businessmen its decisions before applying them, which was a good step.
The proposal suggests reducing working hours from 48 to 40 and is apposed by businessmen who repeatedly threatened that such a thing would result in an increase in prices.