Customer Service Center Jobs Reserved for Saudi Citizens, Says HR Ministry

A new ruling from Saudi Arabia’s HR Ministry will now require all call centres to be employed solely by Saudi citizens.

The policy comes after an economic downturn in recent years, largely due to the pandemic and a significant decrease in oil demand . In the third quarter of 2020, unemployment in Saudi Arabia reached 14.9% , and roughly 60% of all Saudi citizens between 20 and 29 are currently unemployed. The HR Ministry believes that by reserving call centre roles specifically for Saudi citizens it will help the country prosper internally.

Ahmed Alrajhi, Minister of Human Resources and Social Development, commented on the ruling on Twitter (News - Alert):“An extension of the ministry’s endeavors to expand Saudisation, with the aim of enabling the nation’s sons and daughters to have job opportunities; We issued a decision restricting work in the professions and jobs of remote customer service to Saudi men and women, whether through direct or indirect contracting,”

Since 2014, Saundi Arabia and other Gulf countries began recruiting migrant workers after oil prices spiraled downward. The dual combination of pandemic difficulties and lack of oil exportation has forced the Saudi Ministry to prevent unemployment from jumping any further. The official ruling states that all client-facing roles that use telephone contact, email, social media and other “modern means” must be held by citizens of the country.

“This decision is intended to create job opportunities for Saudis, help them improve their income levels and support the Saudi economy.” stated the Human Resources and Social Development Ministry.

Along with the hiring changes, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman also revealed that the Saudi Public Investment Fund would invest $40 billion in economic stimulus annually over the next five years. Though the world is growing cautiously optimistic about the pandemic slowing down, Saudi leaders will continue to find ways to help unemployment grow in the meantime.

Edited by Maurice Nagle