Ministry postpones higher Saudization quotas

Minister of Labor Adel Fakeih has postponed implementing new legislation that would have forced private companies to raise their Saudization levels. The move is to help the private sector understand the new amendments, the minister was quoted as saying in a local publication on Wednesday. The amendments had been approved by the Cabinet. Fakeih said the government appreciates the manner in which private companies have sought to improve Saudization levels in the country. Saudis now make up 15 percent of the workforce in the private sector, or over 1.6 million workers, a significant increase from the previous 7 percent, he said. In addition, many are earning higher wages. While 49 percent of Saudis previously earned below SR3,000, this figure had dropped to 4 percent earlier this year, he said.   Arab News