RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s total number of employees in the private sector reached 10.8 million in November, up 0.93 percent from the previous month, according to newly released figures.
Of those, 2.3 million were Saudi nationals, and 8.5 million were residents of the Kingdom, the Saudi National Labor Observatory report revealed.
Analysis of the Saudi national contingent shows that 40.99 percent were females. In contrast, of the 8.5 million non-Saudi workers, 3.86 percent were females.
In November alone, the net growth in jobs for Saudi nationals stood at 13,084, indicating a steady increase in employment within the private sector.
Additionally, 41,028 Saudi citizens joined the private sector for the first time in November.
Last month, the NLO released a first-of-its-kind report that disclosed that the number of Saudis with more than 20 years of experience in the private sector is above 123,000.
At the time, the organization claimed that this figure indicates an improvement in the overall survival and sustainability of such jobs in the Kingdom.
The report also highlighted that this rise was mainly attributed to efforts exerted by the sector such as financial incentives and rewards.
In addition to this, private firms also offer continuous training and development driven by government support, retention, and nationalization programs.
Moreover, in 2021, a study revealed that the Saudi private sector is hiring women at twice the rate of the public sector.
Between the beginning of 2019 and the end of 2020, Saudi women in the labor market grew by 64 percent as the Kingdom underwent several social reforms, particularly for its female population, the study disclosed at the time.
The study, commissioned by the US think tank Brookings Institute, showed the surge was “genuine, private-sector-led,” as female employment in these sectors rose by about 10 percent, twice as quickly as in the public sector, where it grew 5 percent.
Saudi Arabia’s economic diversification path has turned the Kingdom into a hub for employment opportunities thanks to its bold giga-projects, including NEOM, attracting fresh talent into the construction sector.
The massive developments align with the Kingdom’s Vision 2030, which aims to reduce Saudi Arabia’s dependence on oil and enhance the strength of the private sector.
