Riyadh: With the heat, workers in Saudi Arabia will have a lunch break from September 15 to September 15. The Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development announced a ban on outdoor work from 12 noon to 3 pm.
Companies and institutions violating the regulations will be fined between 3,000 riyals and 10,000 riyals for each violation and the establishment will be temporarily or permanently closed.
Ahmed al-Rajhi, the Minister for Human Resources and Social Development, said that working in open sunlight was prohibited for the health and safety of workers.
The law applies to all private sector companies and institutions except those excluded from the ban. The decision will mainly benefit the 27,40,000 contract workers in the country.
At the same time, workers in oil and gas companies, emergency repair workers and workers under governorates in some parts of the country have been exempted from the ban. But company officials need to take steps to protect them from direct sunlight.
Last year, ministry officials arrested hundreds of people for violating the ministry’s ban on work. The Ministry requested all to inform the customer service phone number 199911 regarding the new labor ban violation.