Abu Dhabi: The Saudi Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development has revoked several resolutions issued to deal with the measures taken in relation to employee entitlements during COVID-19, local media reported.
Notably, Article 41, which enabled employers and employees to agree to options including salary cut, unpaid leave and lay-offs, among other measures to cope with the COVID-19 pandemic, was annulled, according to a ministerial decision.
Article 41 became applicable on April 6, 2020, and only applied whenever the government took any measures regarding a general situation that warranted a reduction of salary or any precautionary measure to prevent the worsening of the COVID-19 times.
Saudi companies can no longer take any of the measures in Article 41 including reduction in salary, placing employees on unpaid leave or laying them off, among other measures, prompted by the pandemic, according to the Human Resources Ministry.
