Saudi Arabia: Teachers stripped of posts for blasphemy against Islam, radicalism
Other reasons include sorcery practice, drug abuse, harassment
Cairo: Saudi labour authorities have outlined specific reasons for the immediate exclusion of schoolteachers from their positions, including blasphemy against Islam.
Other reasons specified by the Ministry of Human Resources include espousing "deviant" thinking that may negatively impact students or involvement in radicalism, as directed by the State Security Service.
Teachers may also be sidelined for engaging in anti-Islamic acts, such as sorcery and quackery, or for possessing, using, or distributing drugs and intoxicants that adversely affect mental and physical well-being, according to the Saudi newspaper Al Yaum.
This exclusion does not require a disciplinary committee's intervention and also targets teachers exhibiting unethical behaviour, such as causing physical harm, harassment, or exploiting their position to establish illegal relationships.
In these cases, the offending teacher has the option of retirement, if eligible, or a transfer to an appropriate administrative position in a different agency.
If such a position is unavailable, the teacher may retire, pending approval, if their years of service qualify them for a pension. Alternatively, they may be transferred to a lower position within their current institution or to another agency upon request.
If the expelled teacher does not wish to take a lower position, they may be assigned non-teaching work in schools or education departments for a maximum of six months, during which they will receive their salary based on their current rank.
During this time, they are expected to seek suitable non-teaching roles within government agencies. Failure to secure a position will be considered resignation.