Saudi Arabia launched the labor reform initiative on Wednesday to improve the contractual relationship between employees and employers.
The Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development said the initiative also aims to support its vision of creating an attractive job market, empowering employees and developing the working environment in the kingdom.
The reforms will give foreign workers the right to change jobs by transferring their sponsorship from one employer to another, leaving and re-entering the country, and obtaining permanent exit visas without their employer’s consent, which has long been required.
The initiative is scheduled to come into force on March 14, 2021. Around 10 million foreign workers live in Saudi Arabia.
The reforms are part of Vision 2030, which aims to make Saudi Arabia more attractive to foreign investors, expand the private sector and diversify the kingdom’s oil-dependent economy.
The ministry said the initiative will improve the efficiency of the working environment in Saudi Arabia and complement similar initiatives in this regard, including the wage protection system, digital documentation of employment contracts, the initiative to educate and raise awareness among workers and the introduction of Wedy to resolve issues Labor disputes.
The initiative aims to increase the flexibility, effectiveness and competitiveness of the labor market and to increase its attractiveness in line with best international practices and Saudi labor law.
It also activates the contractual agreement between the employee and the employer on the basis of his employment contract through digital documentation of these contracts, which will help reduce the differences between the Saudi workers and the expatriates. This in turn will have a positive impact on the labor market by increasing employment opportunities for Saudis while increasing the attractiveness of the local labor market for top talent.
The exit and re-entry visa reforms allow foreign workers to travel outside the UK without the consent of the employer after filing an application. The employer is informed electronically of his departure.
The definitive exit visa reforms will allow the foreign worker to leave the Kingdom upon termination of the employment contract without the employer’s consent and will notify the employer electronically, with the worker bearing all consequences (financial or otherwise) related to the breach of the employment contract . All three services are made available to the public via the “Absher” smartphone application and the “Qiwa” portal of the Ministry of Personnel.
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