The Saudi Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development has announced the recent implementation of the Work Interruption Service, as part of the national recruitment online platform Musaned. This new project aims to improve the contractual relationship between employers and employees, specifically domestic workers. The objective of this new service is to allow employers to efficiently terminate employment contracts, when a domestic worker fails to turn up to work. The Work Interruption Service has been designed to “ensure clarity and safeguarding for both parties.”
The service is part of a broader government initiative to reduce manual bureaucracy and digitise labour-market interactions. Saudi officials have framed this initiative as a shift toward aa “more human and structured labour policy.” It aims to improve previous issues employers faced when a domestic worker fails to show up to work, for example the inability to hire a replacement quickly due to the lack of formal procedures. The service has created formal legal pathways to aid employers in terminating a domestic workers contract, and therefore eased the difficulty of finding a replacement.
Upon the employer’s termination of the contract, there are two possible outcomes for the domestic worker. If the worker has been in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia for under two years, they are obliged to leave within a 60-day time frame. If the worker has resided in the Kingdom for over two years, they must find a new employer or leave the Kingdom. Failure to find new employment or leave the Kingdom within the 60 days is a violation of labour regulations and the domestic worker will be deported. The ministry states that the travel expenses fall upon the domestic worker, if in the case they are unable to pay for their exit, the deportation expenses will be paid by the state.
The Saudi government has portrayed this new service as ensuring transparency and protection for both parties, but in reality, all it does is allow easier employer abuse of the domestic worker. There has been no mention of mandatory evidence the employer must submit to prove an extended absence from work from the employee, insinuating the claim relies on the word of the employer. This leaves domestic workers in a vulnerable position where this service can be used and abused to unlawfully fire domestic workers, if an employer wishes. The New Work Interruption Service is a clear demonstration of the Saudi government’s prioritization of employer needs, over domestic workers’ safety and rights.
Saudi Arabia is notorious for its perpetual mistreatment of migrant workers, specifically in the domestic work sector. Migrant workers go unpaid for months, forced to work extensive hours in inhumane conditions and are subject to emotional, physical and sexual abuse by employers. This mistreatment is enabled by the kafala system, a system founded in employer ownership of the employee, enabling the employer to violate international labour human rights law. It is known that Saudi Arabia does not cooperate under international labour frameworks, and this new service only further enables Saudi employers to violate labour rights.
Migrant workers deserve to work in security. Employers must be held responsible for all violations and abuses they subject their employees to. The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is not exempt from following international labour laws, nor international human rights law. This service only further allows employers to exploit their employees.
