Designing the right approach in Saudi Arabia

Last month, the Saudi Minister of Labour issued orders for the total nationalisation of the work force at all sales outlets and maintenance centres of mobile phones and their accessories within six months. As per the new directive, such shops will have to replace all expatriate workers with Saudis within a period of six months, and the final date of implementation of the directive was expected to be on September 3 of this year.

The minister added that the directive would be implemented in cooperation with the ministries of commerce and industry, municipal and rural affairs, and communications and information technology. The ministry said the decision will be implemented in all regions and cities of the Kingdom without exception and it will be applicable to shops of all sizes. Barely days later, inspection teams from the Ministry of Labour, in coordination with the security forces, started raids on mobile phone sales outlets and maintenance shops across the Kingdom. The teams inspected thousands of shops and recorded several violations. Punitive measures have been taken against the shops and workers who violated the labor and residency regulations.

Now, I do not have an issue with the Labour Ministry trying to increase the presence of Saudis in the job market, but my problem is with the way they go about it. Did we establish trade schools long before the directive was issued to prepare Saudis to take up this profession? Did we even bother to find out whether Saudis are interested in working in such a highly-competitive field that is known for long hours and little reward? I am not sure such a study was carried out.

It has become a tradition for each successive labour minister to identify a new field that young Saudis can be absorbed in. In the past, one labour minister identified taxi driving as a targeted profession for Saudis. There was one minister who decided that all travel agencies would be nationalised immediately. Before that, another stated that his ministry was looking at several more trades for Saudisation. They included barbers, tailors, plumbers and electricians. At the time I questioned whether there were institutions available that were qualifying master Saudi hair-cutters? And the same argument applied to the other trades mentioned. There are no such institutions that I knew of at the time that produced individuals who can possibly tell the difference between 110volts or 220volts, or help determine what the best fare would be from point A to point B.

I remember the raids on travel agencies by overzealous labour ministry staff. Expatriate travel agents were locked out of their offices. There was also a similar scenario at supermarkets where expatriate staff were being bundled out and taken away. Am I going to witness a similar fashion of detention of the neighbourhood South Indian technician who programs my mobile phone? While my phone is still in the process of being updated or repaired?

Looking around, I can see that previous efforts to nationalise certain trades have fallen flat and short of their intended target. Expatriates still dominate the travel agency sector, the taxi and limousine service and the staffing at most supermarkets. The failure of previous directives should give present ministers a reason to take a step backwards and understand why such rules never took off.

If I were member of this ministry, I would suggest the following: Identify the expatriate professionals who merit a high qualification. Offer them the Saudi nationality on the condition that they become part of the teaching force. Open up institutions of training with such qualified individuals running them, and voila! You have produced a pool of fresh graduates in the different trades with superior talents, and with minimal effort or fresh recruitment. A qualified national is worth the price to pay for such efforts.

Using the experience of those among us to help us out, before venturing out and bringing in more teachers would be more productive. Currently, we do not have the facilities to absorb the high number of locals waiting to be qualified in the various trades and join the labour pool effortlessly. Nor should we be quickly inclined to send our children en masse to vocational schools out of the country.

With the wealth of their experience, the transference of knowledge from these willing expats (now Saudis) would fill the marketplace with a labour pool worthy of employment. This is a big country, and can easily absorb any number of professionals who choose to remain here on this condition. And it would be for a worthy cause. Employers will hire Saudis and would make some sacrifices in terms of higher wages — but to a certain degree.

The biggest impediment today to hiring most Saudis is their lack of experience and discipline. Through such masters, some would be reformed and turned into hopeful professionals, be they tailors, plumbers, barbers, electricians or mobile phone salesmen, they all need help.

Let us use existing assets on our soil to get that help to them.

Tariq A. Al Maeena is a Saudi socio-political commentator. He lives in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. You can follow him on Twitter at www.twitter.com/@talmaeena.