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Riyadh: Members of the gold and jewellery committee at the Riyadh Chamber of Commerce and Industry have asked Minister of Labour Dr Ghazi Al Qusaibi to allow gold traders to recruit foreign experts to train Saudis in the jewellery business.
The request came after the government issued orders to replace expatriates with Saudis in gold shops.
The minister held a meeting with the committee to exchange views on the government's policies regarding the "Saudisation" of the gold and jewellery sector.
He highlighted the efforts made by businessmen to recruit more Saudis in the sector. The businessmen were urged to do more in terms of training.
The Saudi cabinet in a meeting in February adopted a number of measures to recruit more Saudis in jewellery shops. It was decided that "Saudisation" of jobs in gold and jewellery showrooms will continue. There would be a focus on training, particularly on-the-job training under the supervision of the Ministry of Labour and the General Organisation for Technical Education and Vocational Training.
It was also decided that the prescribed 10 per cent ratio of Saudi employees in each jewellery shop was sufficient for the time being.
Gradual increase
The cabinet also noted that the number of Saudis working in these shops could increase gradually at a rate ranging from two to five per cent every year, and that shops are not allowed to employ non-Saudis unless granted approval by the Ministry of Commerce and Industry.
Sulaiman Al Othaim, chairman of the gold and jewellery committee, said in remarks published yesterday that the panel was unable to convince the minister to allow the recruitment of a foreign expert in each gold and jewellery shop.
He added that they were hoping the minister would agree on the other option of recruiting one expert for every five shops. This would bring the number of experts needed to only 500, he said.
Al Othaim disclosed that Saudi Arabia accounts for 73 per cent of the gold and jewellery trade in the Gulf.
Earlier, a number of Saudi gold dealers opened branches in GCC cities to benefit from foreign expertise in these countries. Reports at the time said that the traders are unhappy about the high percentage of Saudis they had been asked to employ.
The Saudi jewellery market is the fourth largest in the Middle East in terms of consumption.
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