Sponsorship transfer rules eased in Saudi Arabia

Riyadh, Sep 10: The Ministry of Labor (MOL) recently posted an advisory on its official social network account stating that a newly recruited foreign worker can look for another sponsor without permission if his company fails to issue a work permit as a result of being in the Red or Yellow zone category.

If a company falls within the Red or Yellow zones it is not allowed to recruit foreign workers or renew the permits of it current expatriate staff.

Other situations that entitle foreign workers to seek a change in sponsorship include the failure of their companies to issue work and residence permits within three months of their arrival, or the expiry of the work permits and iqamas of its other staff.

Many workers, including Filipinos, have welcomed the new advisory. Hundreds of Filipinos stopped working over the past two months in protest against their companies' failure to renew their permits or provide them with renewed documentation.

In Riyadh, newly recruited Filipino engineers workers sought the help of Arab News to resolve a labor dispute with their construction company because they had not been issued iqamas for several months.

“We commend the Saudi Labor Ministry for issuing the advisory because it clarifies the issue with regard to the transfer of workers to other sponsors,” said John Monterona, regional coordinator of the Filipino migrant rights group Migrante-Middle East.

“The advisory provides guidance to expatriate workers who are seeking to transfer from their sponsor or employer,” he said. “The Ministry of Labor also encourages workers to report any violations against them if they are asked to work under the direct sun in open areas from 12 noon to 3 p.m. during the period from June 15 to Sep. 15.”

The labor ministry advisory says that working under direct sunlight during these times may expose workers to occupational hazards and increase the chances of suffering sunstroke and other heat-related injuries.

“We also convey our appreciation to the Arab News reporter for the translation he had made, which we were able to distribute to various social networking sites so that it could reach not only overseas foreign workers but also large numbers of expatriate workers in the Kingdom,” Monterona said.