JEDDAH — Tens of thousands of private sector employees were in disarray just as they could not withdraw their salaries before Eid Al-Fitr holidays as commercial banks refused to accept salary deposits claiming that many companies send salary checks very late. Employees hoped that the Saudi Arabian Monetary Agency (SAMA) would have intervened and put part of the blame on the central bank as it changed Eid bank holidays abruptly. A senior bank official, meanwhile, denied reports and said most banks have accepted salary deposits. The surprise SAMA decision changing Eid holidays might have affected the system, he said. The official blamed private companies for the problem as many of them deposited their employees' salaries on the last day of June, which coincided with the last working day of banks as per the new announcement. "Where were the company representatives in the past days and why did not they bother about salaries of their employees except in the last day of holidays. Most companies pay salaries to their employees in advance because of Ramadan and Eid," he pointed out. Managers of companies said banks had suspended the facility for depositing checks of salaries on some firms to the end of Eid Al-Fitr holidays citing their salary checks came after the working hours. They also refuted justifications put forward by banks. Ridwan Abdussalam, HR manager in a Jeddah company, told Makkah Arabic daily that the problem started when banks refused to accept deposits of salaries from some companies. "This has affected employees of many companies," he told Makkah daily. He denied the allegation of banks that private companies delayed payment of salaries. "Most companies pay salaries on time at the end of every month to abide by the wage protection program." He said the problem was caused by the abrupt change in bank holidays. Abdul Rahman Al-Johani, accounts manager in a company, said: "Tens of thousands of private sector employees awaited SAMA intervention to force banks to accept their salaries at the end of Ramadan to help meet Eid Al-Fitr expenses." Talaat Hafiz, spokesman for the banks, rejected generalization of the issue, saying all banks receive such salary deposits on the basis of bilateral agreements, adding that banks would abide by the agreements signed with private companies. "Some companies may not have deposited salaries of their employees in banks on time. So we should not accuse banks without knowing the real reason behind the delay and the terms and conditions of bilateral agreements," he explained.
