SASless
18th Jul 2005, 12:30
Saudi bar on foreign guardsPublished: Tuesday, 12 July, 2005, 12:46 PM Doha Time
RIYADH: The Saudi cabinet yesterday decided to phase out the recruitment of all foreign security guards in the kingdom, the official SPA news agency said.
At its weekly session, ministers decided that in future individuals and institutions alike would be allowed to hire only “licensed Saudi individuals.”
Private security firms would have to terminate the employment of non-Saudi personnel and replace them with nationals within 90 days of the rule coming into force, the news agency said..
A deadly two-year-old wave of militant unrest, in which the large expatriate community has been targeted, has prompted many foreign firms to take on private security consultants.
The Saudi authorities have moved to reserve jobs in a range of industries wholly or partly for nationals in a bid to tackle rising unemployment.
The government puts joblessness among nationals at around 10%, but unofficial estimates put it at about 20% of the male population. Just 10% of women of working age have a job.
Mohamed al-Zalfa, of the appointed Shura Council which recommended the new move, argued that halting work permits for foreign guards would actually help boost security as they were often underpaid and underqualified. – AFP
RIYADH: The Saudi cabinet yesterday decided to phase out the recruitment of all foreign security guards in the kingdom, the official SPA news agency said.
At its weekly session, ministers decided that in future individuals and institutions alike would be allowed to hire only “licensed Saudi individuals.”
Private security firms would have to terminate the employment of non-Saudi personnel and replace them with nationals within 90 days of the rule coming into force, the news agency said..
A deadly two-year-old wave of militant unrest, in which the large expatriate community has been targeted, has prompted many foreign firms to take on private security consultants.
The Saudi authorities have moved to reserve jobs in a range of industries wholly or partly for nationals in a bid to tackle rising unemployment.
The government puts joblessness among nationals at around 10%, but unofficial estimates put it at about 20% of the male population. Just 10% of women of working age have a job.
Mohamed al-Zalfa, of the appointed Shura Council which recommended the new move, argued that halting work permits for foreign guards would actually help boost security as they were often underpaid and underqualified. – AFP