Contractors in the construction business said several factors have led to a rise in workers’ wages, in particular for plumbers, painters and electricians.
The procedures concerning status correction led to foreign workers leaving the Kingdom and prevailing high temperatures have both contributed to the rise in wages.
They said that the daily wages of a worker used to be between SR100 and SR150 but that this rate has taken an upward trend since then to reach SR 300 for some professions in the regions of Riyadh, Jeddah and the Eastern province due to the insufficient number of workers.
An official at the Ministry of Labor said it does not intervene in defining the daily wages of workers, as labor markets are governed by supply and demand. Contractors demanded that the Ministry of Labor and other authorities allow the establishment of firms that specialize in recruiting workers with incorrect papers in the Kingdom to curb wages, which have risen to more than 120 percent in some cities.
Fahd Al-Hamadi, head of the national committee of contractors, said that status correction is a positive step, but nonetheless added, “The decision has created a big gap between citizens and small- and medium-sized enterprises.
“Many projects were halted because the majority of the workers were in violation of the new labor laws. They left the country taking advantage of the amnesty period granted by the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques.
Others transferred their sponsorships to major firms,” he said. He called on the Ministry of Labor to enact new regulations and find alternative solutions that should coincide with the correction campaign to avoid delays in many government and individual projects.
Saad Al-Wahaibi, chairman of the Al-Wahaibi Contracting Group and member of the contracting committee at the Eastern Province Chamber, said many parties took advantage of the correction campaign and the deportation of foreign workers in the construction business by raising the daily wages. Al-Wahaibi expects wages to maintain an upward trend in the coming period.
He demanded the Ministries of Labor and Commerce to impose a fixed and stable wage for each profession and set a time frame to accomplish its implementation in coordination with other parties.
Workers’ wages rising with legalized status, high temperatures
