A total of 92 percent of workers passed courses over the past year offered by the Technical and Vocational Training Corporation (TVTC) for various jobs in the Kingdom.

The Ministry of Labor's 2012/2013 annual report issued recently said that out of the 2,248 workers who sat the TVTC examinations, 1,818 passed.

The report stated that the ministry changed the professions of 358,000 workers last year, a 5.2 percent increase from the year before. The majority of workers, at 44 percent, worked in the construction industry, the report said.

It said that many employers had not hired more workers, but had opted to use their current staff to fill positions. The ministry had checked all the applications and issued permits needed, the report added.

The report also revealed that the ministry fined 1,513 firms SR11.1 million for violating regulations last year. There were 26,319 disputes, with 2,272 cases involving work injuries.

The country's courts issued rulings in 10,523 cases last year, a 22 percent increase from the previous year. Riyadh and Jeddah accounted for 2,823 cases, an 18 percent increase from the year before.

The report said the ministry stopped providing services for 189 firms. It also transferred the work permits of 17 workers without seeking permission from their employers.

The ministry received 1,021 complaints, with 27 resolved amicably without referral to labor offices or committees.