Okaz/Saudi Gazette

RIYADH — Any job advertisement involving discrimination against the applicant is considered as a violation of the provisions of article 3 of the Labor Law that guarantees equality, according to legal experts.

Speaking to Okaz/Saudi Gazette, lawyer and legal advisor Bandar Al-Amoudi and lawyer Kholoud Al-Ahmadi warned against any form of racism, saying that those who were not nominated for jobs because of discrimination have the right to lodge a complaint with the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development or to the administrative courts.

Al-Amoudi explained that discrimination based on age in employment is a violation of the Labor Law unless there is a convincing reason.

It is prohibited for the employer to show discrimination between workers in terms and conditions of work such as gender, disability, age and any other forms of discrimination whether during work or when hiring or advertising except for substantial and convincing reasons pertaining to the job.

Saudi Arabia’s regulations guarantee the right to work for every capable person without discrimination in any way, as the Basic Law of Governance stipulates in its article 28 that “the state facilitates the fields of work for every capable person.”

The third article of the Labor Law, which was amended by a royal decree in 1440 AH, stipulates that “work is the right of a citizen, and no one else is allowed to practice it except after fulfilling the conditions stipulated in the law.”

Citizens have equal right to work without any discrimination on the basis of gender, disability, age, or any other form of discrimination, whether during the performance of work or when hiring or advertising about.

Al-Amoudi noted that articles 229 and 230 of the Labor Law stipulate penalties including fine on the employer for violation of its provisions, and article (1) of the Civil Service Law stipulates, “Merit is the basis for selecting employees to occupy public positions.”

Article 4 of the law sets the conditions for occupying a public office, in which nominations for government jobs shall be made without any discrimination between citizens except for their qualifications and degrees.

“Those who have not been nominated have the right to appeal to the ministry or the administrative courts. In this regard, the ministry launched initiatives to prevent discrimination in employment and protect and promote the right to work, to be attractive to young job seekers.

The state has launched initiatives that prevent all discriminations, including discrimination in employment according to age, except for convincing reasons related to job,” he said while noting that the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development monitors the implementation of regulations and decisions.

On her part, Kholoud Al-Ahmadi stressed that the provisions of the Labor Law do not allow discrimination between workers on the basis of sex, disability, age, or any other elements, whether during work or when hiring or advertising.

She said that many male and female employees of the private sector are ignorant of their job rights stipulated in the law. Al-Ahmadi suggested holding periodic workshops to inform the employee of his rights and duties during his work or after the end of his contract and everything related to the Labor Law.

The Labor Law consists of 245 legal articles that come under the purview of its executive regulations, whether it is related to original work, temporary work, seasonal work, or part-time work.

110,000 labor verdicts

issued in 24 months

Okaz/Saudi Gazette has learned that the total labor related judgments issued during the last two years accounted for 110,000. The total court sessions held during the same period stood at more than 330,000 sessions, and the total labor cases closed in less than two weeks during the last Hijri year were about 16,155 cases.

Around 30 percent of the cases were closed in one session during the past year, while the percentages of closed cases during the two and three sessions were 40 percent and 30 percent respectively.

The digital structure on which the labor courts was founded contributed to the improvement of judicial outcome and the reduction of cases’ closing times. The average appointments in labor courts and departments were about 650 sessions on a daily basis.

The Ministry of Justice allows the parties involved in labor disputes to file cases to the labor courts electronically via the portal of Najiz Center for Judicial Services for all types of cases.

Be it labor cases subject to the Labor Law or cases of domestic workers and the like, as well as complaints of employers and workers against decisions issued by the General Organization for Social Insurance regarding subscription registration and compensation.