Jeddah municipality has formed a committee consisting of specialized teams to follow up and monitor for violations and irregularities in the city’s vegetable market since the market is dominated by foreign workers and that random sales operations are taking place there.

The committee is tasked with monitoring for violations and then developing a study to analyze the results of the operation so that regulations can be created for all stalls inside the market.

The committee was originally formed by Jeddah governorate to study Saudization job compliance, for the possibility of nationalyzing jobs in the vegetable and fruit market in the city.

The committee, with a chairman and three members, will establish field teams to visit all vegetable shops dedicated to auction, wholesale operations and a number of retail shops.

Mutasim Abu Zinada, president of brokers at the central vegetable market in Jeddah, said that the irregularities and violations in the market involve foreigner workers. Other irregularities discovered through inspection campaigns involve non-compliance with the dress code specified by Jeddah municipality, allocating suitable parking lots for trucks and refrigerators, and the health certificates of workers.

Abu Zinada confirmed that stall owners and wholesale vendors must possess licenses and are under the direct supervision of the municipality. Every shop owner will be held accountable if found in violation of labor and residency regulations.

The Ministry of Labor confirmed earlier that one of the main obstacles facing the Saudization committee in the Jeddah vegetable market is the almost total domination of foreign laborers on sales and purchasing operations, amassing 75 percent of all such transactions.

Saudi regulations require employing at least one Saudi in each shop.