RIYADH, 24 July 2004 —Minister of Labor, Dr. Ghazi Al-Gosaibi, warned citizens and businessmen against recruiting workers from abroad and then letting them start their own businesses in the Kingdom. He also warned against the practice of allowing labor to live and work independent of their sponsor in exchange for being paid a monthly “commission.”
This practice, he said, would have negative impact on Saudi society.
A committee of senior religious scholars has issued a fatwa supporting the move, forbidding both the practices of taking “commission” and the employment of illegal overstayers.
The practice is already against the Kingdom’s labor law. The committee has ruled against the sale of visas and taking share from an illegal worker’s salary when they are working independently.
In a press statement yesterday, the minister called on the people to work with the ministry to fight this serious problem and also to abide by the laws of the country.
Former Grand Mufti of Saudi Arabia Sheikh Abdul Aziz Bin Baz issued a similar fatwa several years ago, forbidding the taking of monthly “commission” and the selling of visas.
