Saudis to get double the minimum wage of expats

Saudi Arabia is considering fixing the minimum wage for both Saudis and expats in the private sector in 2015 as the third part of its wage protection programme, local media reported on Tuesday.

With a minimum wage for Saudis at SAR5,300 ($1,412) and expats at SAR2,500, the Labour Ministry aims to make the private sector more appealing to Saudis and boost the process of job nationalisation, the Saudi Gazette reported.

Mansour Al-Shethry, chairman of the Saudi Labour Market Committee, said that salaries of 1,600,070 Saudis employed in the private sector were less than those of expatriates.

A recent study, conducted by the World Bank and the Ministry of National Economy and Planning, showed that salaries of Saudis working in the private sector were less than the natives of other GCC countries would receive.

The current minimum wage for Saudi nationals, SAR3000 (US $800), was introduced in 2012, forcing hotels to rethink their budgets in order to meet Saudization quotas.