Details of Labor Law amendments

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The official gazette Umm Al-Qura published on Friday amendments to the Labor Law, which were approved by the Cabinet this month.

The amendments included adding two definitions to Article 2; outsourcing and resignation. Assignment is the service of providing an employee to work for an entity other than theiremployer through a licensed establishment.Resignation means the worker's written expression to terminate a fixed-term employment contract without coercion, conditions or restrictions, and the employer's acceptance of it.

Article 7 was also amended to exclude some individuals from the provisions of this law; family members of the employer working in an establishment exclusively owned by them, as well as sports club players and coaches. This is in addition to domestic workers, private agricultural workers, and non-Saudi workers hired for specific tasks not exceeding two months.

Further, Article 30 was amended to read as follows:No individual or legal entity may engage in the activity of employing Saudis, recruiting workers, or assignment unless licensed by the ministry.

The regulations will define the conditions for practicing such activities, the requirements for granting and renewing licenses, the obligations of the licensees, as well as the rules for non-renewal or cancellation of the license, the consequences thereof, and any other necessary conditions and regulations to ensure the proper conduct of such activities.

Article 35 was amended to read as follows:The ministry, at its discretion, may refuse to renew a work permit if the employer violates the Saudization measures set by the ministry or any other conditions or regulations stated in the bylaw. The bylaw shall outline the procedures to ensure that the worker is not adversely affected by the non-renewal of the work permit, including the possibility of transferring the worker's services to another employer without the approval of the non-compliant employer.

Article 37 was also amended to read as follows: A contract of employment for a non-Saudi worker shall be written with a fixed term. If the contract does not specify a term, it shall be effective for one year from the date the worker actually begins work. If the work continues after this period, the contract shall be considered automatically renewed for a similar term.

In addition,Articles 195 and 197, 203, 205, 206, 207, and 208 were repealed.