The Jeddah Human Resource Forum held a meeting to introduce new government legislations for the Saudi labor market.

Ibrahim Almuaiqit, general director of Human Resource Development Fund (HRDF), said it’s their mission and vision to develop human resources (HR) and create more skilled employees.

He said that in order to achieve this aim, they had drawn up a strategic plan to involve the private sector in all their programs.

Ziad Al-Alsayagh, deputy minister of customer service and labor relations in the Ministry of Labor, said that legislations governing the human resources need to be adhered to for development, especially in the private sector so that they will be partners in the development of the Kingdom.

He highlighted Labor Ministry’s new procedures and legislations, which he said will help in developing the labor market, and would contribute to developing the economy of the Kingdom.

It is important for employers and officials of HR departments to work together in the labor market, adding that the developmental programs and their implementation with the coordination of experts would help to deal with the challenges in the market.

He highlighted the benefits of the Nitaqat system, salary increments, monitoring the salary system through bank accounts, customer service, and 20 online services of the Labor Ministry.

He applauded the support by the Ministry of Finance by giving SR43 million to the Labor Ministry to overcome the obstacles facing the labor market.

“Through the Hafiz program, we interviewed and selected 4,000 candidates from a total of more than 72,000, who were trained in different fields. This is the time to bring about change, and strategies are being made to make the private sector an integral part of the development of the Kingdom on national and international levels,” he said.

He said the private sector is planning to train youth in order to achieve 100 percent Saudization.

Ziyad Murtaza, country president of Schneider Saudi Arabia and Yemen, said:

“Investment in human resources is the key to strategic partnerships, and its development is an important element in business growth in the Kingdom.

David Jalili, a human resource expert, said it is important for HR departments to have the right people.

“If companies want to become strategic partners with other firms, they should earn their confidence with the right policies,” he said.

“It is important for HR departments to understand the challenges, services, employees’ needs. It is also necessary to ensure that these departments are providing the right services which are beneficial for all the stakeholders,” he added.