Expats fear salary cut in 5-day week

A widespread paranoia has developed among expatriate workers who fear a reduction in their salaries after the introduction of a five-day week in the private sector.

A recent proposal by the Ministry of Labor recommended reducing the working week in Saudi Arabia from six to five days for the private sector. Expat workers greeted the proposal with anger and fear.
Hattab bin Saleh Al-Anzi, the director general of Public Relations and Media and spokesperson of Labor Ministry, told Arab News that the proposal would be submitted to the council of ministers in a few days.
“We haven’t submitted the proposal yet. Once the ministers’ council receives the proposal, they will investigate it and let us know their final decision,” he said.
Expat workers said they are sometimes urged to work overtime to gain more money. They claim that such an unfair proposal shouldn’t be implemented.
The proposal angers not only expatriate workers, but authorities in the trade and commerce sector too. Officials in chambers of commerce said that such a decision might lead to higher production costs, particularly for the industrial sector.
Some expats confirmed that companies have already alerted employees about a reduction of their salaries once the proposal gets approved.
“Many expat workers do not take a single day's leave all year, even if they are sick. Taking time off means a reduction in salary. This is why most of us (expatriates) choose to work year-round,” said Karim Shafiq, an Egyptian sales representative.