Riyadh tops Saudi cities in resolved labour cases

Cairo: The Saudi capital Riyadh has led other regions in the kingdom in the number of labour cases resolved in the fourth quarter of this year.

Some 10,644 such cases have been finalised so far in Riyadh, followed by Mecca with 9,820 and the Eastern Province with 5,449, Saudi newspaper Al Watan has reported.

The overall number of the achieved cases in the final quarter of the year in 12 Saudi regions reached 34,389 after a total of 73,342 hearing sessions.

The south-western regions of Jazan and Najran as well as H’ail in the north west recorded a decline in the number of such cases during the same period with three each in Jazan and Najran, and one case in H’ail.

The drop in labour cases in some regions is because many employers there abide by the labour regulations on the one hand and many workers do not file a legal complaint and prefer to reach amicable solutions with the employer to the problems they may encounter on the other, according to legal advisor Asim Saleh.

He singled out wage disputes as constituting most of labour cases.

“The law guarantees the worker the right to file a lawsuit with the labour courts and holds the employer accountable for negligence,” Saleh said, according to Al Watan.

Saudi Arabia, a country of 32.2 million, is home to a large community of expatriate workers.

In recent years, Saudi labour tribunals have kept abreast of major developments in the kingdom’s job market by fast-tracking decisions on related disputes and protecting rights of workers and employers alike.

A mechanism has been introduced in the kingdom to reach friendly settlements to disputes that may break out between the employee and the employer to ensure stable relationship between the contractual parties.

Efforts to reach an amicable settlement mark the first phase in handling suits on labour rows during which mediation endeavours are made to bring views of the parties involved closer in a bid to reach a compromise acceptable to both sides.

If not, the suit is referred to a labour court within the 21 days of the first settlement session.

In 2018, new labour courts were introduced in Saudi Arabia to ensure fast-track litigation and delivery of justice as part of massive reforms in the country.