JEDDAH — The second phase of Saudi Arabia's decision to localize professions in grocery stores and supermarkets came into force on Monday. This phase aims to reduce the number of foreign staff in sales by half in the roles of department manager, deputy branch manager, and branch manager. According to the procedural guide for localizing grocery chains and supermarkets jobs, the second phase commences after a grace period of 360 days from Safar 25, 1442 AH (Oct. 12, 2020), the date of publishing the decision. All retail chains with an area of less than 300 square meters and supermarkets with an area of less than 500 square meters are included in the decision. In the first phase, sales roles were limited to Saudis (customer accountants, accounting fund supervisors, and customer service, customer relations), with only 50% of department supervisors being localized. As of 2021, the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development (HRSD) announced the localization of 20 professions and activities from a variety of sectors, as well as the establishment of nearly 378,000 employment openings. HRSD made these decisions in order to providing stimulating and productive job opportunities for Saudi males and females in various parts of the Kingdom, as well as to enhance their labor market involvement in line with the goals of the Kingdom's Vision 2030.
