Labor Ministry to go after brokers who manipulate recruitment prices

JEDDAH: The Ministry of Labor will prosecute brokers who violate the recruitment and domestic labor laws by manipulating prices.
A ministry spokesman was quoted in the local media as saying that the ministry was working to stop unlicensed recruitment offices, and would take punitive action against all such market manipulators.
He said that there was ongoing coordination between the ministry and Saudi embassies and consulates abroad to identify the offices that send domestic workers to the Kingdom. The government wants to ensure that the offices in foreign countries follow all the applicable regulations.
He added that there was ongoing cooperation with the Foreign Ministry to register and take legal action against those who violate the domestic recruitment laws, adding that the Foreign Ministry was in the process of following up with the concerned parties which involves the inspection of recruitment companies and offices where licenses may be suspended for illegal behavior.
Yahiya Al-Maqboul, chairman of the Recruitment Committee at the Jeddah Chamber of Commerce and Industry (JCCI), said that the recruitment rates in some countries were overestimated because of brokers who hike up prices to unprecedented levels.
He admitted that prices have increased in various countries such as Vietnam, and added that the recruitment cost from that country is no more than $4,000, equivalent to SR15,000, despite some brokers charging fees much higher.
Regarding recent accusations against members of the National Recruitment Committee, he said: “The committee was dissolved last year because of differences between the members which led to resignations. The accused members should come out and state their positions regarding price hikes.”
He called on citizens not to work with dishonest brokers. One recruitment office owner said that it was shameful that these brokers had made their work harder; he called for greater organization within the sector.
A top official at the Council of Saudi Chambers (CSC) confirmed that the work of the National Recruitment Committee was halted in May 2015, and that it is now the Labor Ministry which is handling recruitment files and that he hoped that all problems in the recruitment system would be solved.