Riyadh: The Saudi Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development has collected 6.6 million riyals from employers and institutions to receive wages and benefits for private sector workers. This was achieved through the ‘Friendly Settlement’ project, an electronic platform of the Riyadh Labor Office. 6,000 employment cases have been settled through this, said the director of the Riyadh branch of the ministry. Muhammad Alharbi said.
He explained that this was possible through ‘distance reconciliation dialogue’. Disputes related to breach of mutual contract, injury during performance of work, dismissal from employment etc. were settled if the due amount of wages and retirement benefits were made available to the worker from the institutions.
‘Friendly Settlement’ is one of the initiatives of the ‘National Transformation Program’ designed to improve the working conditions of the expatriates and increase the quality of the labor sector in the country. In 2018, the Ministry of Justice had put forward a plan to amicably settle labor disputes at labor offices within three weeks. It was suggested that grievances not resolved within this period should be submitted to labor courts through electronic platform. That is considered to be successful now.