RIYADH – The Ministry of Labor will start applying the mandatory Wage Protection Program on big companies and private schools effective from Sept. 1. The companies with more than 3,000 staff, as well as private schools will come under the program. The size of the school, whether it is big or small, will not be taken into consideration. According to ministry sources, the basic objective of the program is to guarantee that Saudi and non-Saudi employees working in the private sector get their full salaries on time. Under the program, companies must register files related to their salary disbursement at the ministry's web portal for e-services. Abdullah Abu Thunain, Deputy Minister for inspection and work environment development, said the program enables the ministry to closely supervise the payment of wages in the private sector through an advanced data base, consisting of details of disbursement of salaries by employers and fulfillment of their obligations on the basis of the provisions of the Labor Law as well as the labor contract signed with their employees. “The ministry will check whether the salaries deposited by employers in their employees' bank accounts are consistent with the ones mentioned in employment contracts. Also, the ministry will ascertain that the employer is strictly abiding by the regulations to make payment of the agreed salary on time,” he said. Abu Thunain said that the new program aims at creating a better work environment as well as addresses problems related to non-payment or delay in disbursement of salaries and allowances. He noted that the program has several advantages such as guaranteeing rights of both parties in a transparent manner, curbing job-related problems, creation of better work environment to boost productivity, ending reckless practices, exposing bogus firms, containing cover-up business, besides catching stray workers.
Abu Thunain said the employer should send the file concerning monthly disbursement of salaries to the concerned bank and he should obtain a copy of the file duly endorsed by the bank so as to register the file at the ministry's portal in order to prove that employees have been paid their salaries on time. “The companies should update the data with regard to salaries of employees at regular intervals,” he added. The ministry earlier disclosed that it will apply the program in phases: First, in big companies, then all private companies and finally all workers in the labor market. The ministry's inspectors would make field tours of companies that break the rules in order to compel them to abide by the regulation. In a recent statement, Labor Minister Adel Fakieh urged each employee to open a bank account if he does not already have one and contact the ministry's website to double check the accuracy of his salary information recorded in the pertinent online system. If any employee finds any inaccuracy, he should ask the employer to fix it.
