JEDDAH, 16 May — The Saudi Telecom Company (STC) has approved a law allowing its employees to pursue private business while retaining their jobs with the company.
According to the law signed by the company Chairman, Abdul Rahman Al-Yami, the company requires from its employees, wishing to practice a private business, that they not carry on this practice at the expense of their office work. Such businesses, said the company, should not interfere with the employees’ work or affect the discharging of their duties and responsibilities toward the STC. The decision is intended to allow STC employees the chance to generate extra income and encourage them to pursue private business.
Under the decision, the employee must confine the business he wants to pursue in one area of activity. The company’s human resource development department in cooperation with relevant authorities in the various regions issues approvals for such arrangement.
The employee will be responsible for securing the commercial register from relevant government offices. The experiment will be subject to revision and evaluation after six months from its introduction to determine its effects on the employees’ performance.
The decision applies to Saudi staff only and prohibits the practice of any commercial dealings that clash with the STC activities including communications, accessories and installation works whether commercial or official. The applicant must first secure the approval of the company and undertake not to allow his private business to contradict with his duty and responsibilities toward the company. The employee must also inform the company of any relationship or link that may develop between his company job and private business.
In the event the company finds out that the private business undertaken by the employee runs the risk of prejudicing STC interests the company has the right to ask the employee to chose between his work with the company or his private business.
