Saudis need extra training 'to replace expats'

June 2, 2013

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Jeddah, Jun 2: The Labor Ministry has made it mandatory for any organization, whether schools, companies or offices, to reserve vacancies in 19 job categories for only Saudis.

These are: Executive HR manager, HR manager, labor affairs manager, staff relations manager, staff relations specialist, staff relations clerk, recruitment clerk, staff affairs clerk, attendance control clerk, receptionist (general), hotel receptionist, health receptionist, claims clerk, treasury secretary, security, broker, key specialist, customs broker and female sales specialists (women only).

Arab News spoke with CEOs, authorities of schools and companies who confirmed that the 19 positions classified above are related to human resources, customer services, health management, accounts, clearing and forwarding agents and, of course, women-sensitive sales areas.

Mohamed H. Zakaria, CEO and general manager of Saudi Steel Profile Company, said that the 19 job categories that are related to the HR department and reserved for Saudi nationals can easily be short-listed or filtered down to three positions. Only companies like Saudi Aramco, Sabic, SEC, or the STC can employ all categories.

“I think the best way to implement Saudization is not through passing legislation but through the sincere and active participation of the private sector and expatriates. The Labor Ministry should seek the help of expatriates to train Saudis to replace them,” he said.

He also said with a per capita income of more than $ 31,000, Saudi Arabia is ahead of many European countries and with 262 billion barrel of oil reserves (excluding natural gas, metals and minerals), each Saudi owns more than a million dollar’s worth of oil.

Forcing Saudis into the private sector will be a temporary way out. Secondly, hiring extra Saudis and putting them on the payroll will throw many private companies out of business, as it will take at least three to five years to train and replace the expatriate work force, especially at the lower and mid levels.

“In fact, most Saudis approaching us for a job don’t even know what job they are seeking and a lot of job-seekers, including Saudis and non-Saudis with even five years of work experience don’t realize that they fall in the entry-level category,” he explained.

Padma Hariharan, director and head of Novel International Group of Institutions, said that these positions are sensitive and organizations, including the government sector, should ensure that the employees they are hiring are sensitive to the needs of the organization, as all positions are ultimately for Saudis only.

She said the area of concern is improvement of communication in English. As the Kingdom has opened its doors to global investment and is encouraging tourism in a big way, it is mandatory for the Saudis employed to effectively communicate in English.

“Training and qualifications are absolutely mandatory to secure the job. The Ministry of Education (MoE) clearly states that we need to appoint Saudi teachers to teach Islamic education, Qur’an, Saudi history and geography and Arabic. Moreover, the Saudi faculty needs graduates in its field. In order to enhance the quality of the work force and the work environment, I would strongly recommend that the government set up a skilled work force center or hub for training professionals in their respective areas,” she added.

Yosef Al Zanbagi, HR manager of MICE Arabia Group for Exhibitions and Conferences, said the royal order has made it mandatory for Saudis to be hired for management positions. Besides, the posts at the lower end of the scale do not require high qualifications. This is why Saudis prefer these posts, thereby easing the problem of unemployment among the citizens.

“Yes, of course training is important. Basically Saudi employees need an educational qualification that matches the position. They then need three months of on-the-job training. In addition to IT knowledge, English, and HR and Management training sessions, the companies usually change the job title or hire expatriates in positions lower than the management level but they perform the same tasks. And some companies do not need these positions. However, after the last royal order there will be no room to circumvent these issues,” he added.

Dr. Hasan Zaman, CEO of Midrar enterprises, said Saudi employers have become more accepting of the fact that hiring foreign labor is not a long term solution.

“Many organizations have started taking steps to send their employees for training and have not used monetary incentives to encourage them. These steps will ensure that a skilled workforce is employed in their organizations,” he said.

The 2013 labor policy has eradicated doubts about the new laws to be implemented. With the exception of posts exclusively marked for Saudis, all other positions for physicians, engineers, nurses, educators, designers, administrators, and even the greater spectrum of technicians, are free to be occupied by non-Saudis.

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News Network
November 15,2024

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Iran’s Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) has killed or captured 69 terrorists linked to the Israeli spy agency Mossad during a major counterterrorism drill in the country's southeast, its spokesman says.  

General Ahmad Shafaei, the spokesman for the “Martyrs of Security” drill, said Friday that a total of 23 terrorists have been killed and another 46 arrested in various clean-up operations ever since the IRGC Ground Force launched it in the Sistan and Baluchestan province on November 1.

Seven terrorists have also turned themselves in during the period.

“The undeniable fact about terrorists is that they rely on arrogant powers, particularly the intelligence service of the wicked and vicious Zionist regime," Shafaei said.

“Unfortunately, weapons and munitions at terrorists’ disposal are among the most sophisticated ones in the world. This accounts for their heavy dependence.” 

The official stated that several members of the disbanded terror teams were non-Iranian nationals, who had been hired by foreign intelligence agencies to carry out acts of sabotage and terror inside Iran.

In a most recent operation, six terrorists were arrested and four others were eliminated, three of whom were non-Iranians, he added. 

On October 26, ten members of Iran's law enforcement forces were killed in a terrorist attack in the Gohar Kuh district of Taftan in the Sistan and Baluchestan province.

The so-called Jaish al-Adl terrorist group claimed responsibility for the assault, which was one of the deadliest in the province in recent months.

The group has carried out numerous terrorist attacks in Iran, primarily in Sistan and Baluchestan.

Its tactics include the abduction of border guards as well as targeting civilians and police stations within the province to incite chaos and disorder.

In January, Iran launched a military operation during which the headquarters of the Pakistan-based terrorist group was targeted in missile strikes, destroying its infrastructure.

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News Network
November 27,2024

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Gaza health authorities say Israel’s military has "erased” over 1,400 Palestinian families in the besieged territory over the past year.

The Health Ministry said in a statement on Tuesday that the Israeli regime "completely erased about 1,410 families, numbering 5,444 people, from the civil registry during the same period.”

It said that there were 3,463 families with only one survivor, while 2,287 families had more than one survivor.

In northern Gaza, Israel’s warplanes have continued dropping bombs over Palestinian families, Palestinian news agency Wafa reported.

It said one airstrike hit a family home in Jabalia, causing numerous casualties on Tuesday.

According to Gaza's civil defense agency, at least seven people were killed and several others wounded in the attack.

Another person was killed in a strike on a house in nearby Beit Lahia, a town in northern Gaza, which has been declared “a disaster area" by the municipality due to "the Israeli war of extermination and siege, and it has no food, water, hospitals, doctors, services, or communications."

The health ministry said, “Israeli forces killed 14 people and injured 108 others in three massacres of families in the last 24 hours.”

“Many people are still trapped under the rubble and on the roads as rescuers are unable to reach them.”

International organizations and leaders believe that Israel’s genocidal war, now in its second year, is a deliberate attempt to destroy the population of Gaza.

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News Network
November 21,2024

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Hamas says the Israeli regime’s sole objective lies in “erasing” the entirety of the Palestinian population from across the Palestinian territories.

Khalil al-Hayya, a ranking official with the Gaza Strip-based Palestinian resistance movement, made the remarks to the Palestinian al-Aqsa TV on Wednesday.

“The occupation targets everyone—it strikes hospitals, civil defense, women, children, and the elderly,” he said, adding that the regime sought to “empty Gaza of its residents, and displace the Palestinian people to fulfill its dreams of building a Zionist Jewish state across all of Palestine.”

The remarks came amid the regime’s October 2023-present war of genocide on the coastal sliver that has so far claimed the lives of nearly 44,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children.

“This unprecedented aggression in modern times evokes scenes from the dark ages of human history, having crossed all red lines and exceeded every expectation of brutality in the modern era,” the Palestinian official lamented.

He also regretted that the regime had added “systematic and dangerous starvation to its aggression, falsely claiming before the world that it allows 250 [aid] trucks into Gaza daily. In reality, the number of trucks is far fewer.”

Hayya, meanwhile, regretted that “scenes of children torn apart, women screaming over their children, and heart-wrenching destruction have failed to stir enough humanity to stop these crimes.”

He decried the United States for vetoing the United Nations Security Council’s resolutions that are aimed at bringing about a potential ceasefire in the war, saying this indicated Washington’s “partnership in the aggression” and a simultaneous siege that the Israeli regime has been enforcing on Gaza.

Addressing Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the official asserted that, despite what the Israeli official is after, Hamas would not hand over the regime’s captives “without [the regime’s] stopping the war.”

He called Netanyahu “the main obstacle” in the way of cessation of the aggression, saying the Israeli premier “blocks any progress for political reasons,” and citing his preventing conclusion of a ceasefire agreement in July.

Hayya also warned that the regime sought to expand the war beyond Gaza, but asserted that its goals are “impossible and will never happen.”

“Today, the enemy exposes its true intentions of extermination and displacement, but it will fail,” he stressed.

“The Palestinian people are resilient and will not surrender, as they believe in their humanitarian and political cause. The enemy and its allies will not succeed in achieving their goals. This steadfast people will endure, and the occupation will not prevail against them.”

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