2023 The Working Hours report

The Working Hours report outlines a detailed plan of how the recording of weekly hours performed by employees in the different sectors of the economy of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia defines the activities of the labor force in the Kingdom. It provides a comprehensive survey comparing the working hours of the labor force in Saudi Arabia with the working hours in a select few nations introduced as “benchmarked countries.” It is a serious study of how prominent labor market statistics and indicators are scrutinized to judge the quality of their performance. These working hours are connected to many other economic concepts such as nationality, gender, the level of education, and the type of economic activity. This is the prelude to the study of the significance of demographics in the analysis of the economic phenomenon of “the working hours.”

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Any study of the working hours performed in any economic sector relates first to the demographic dimensions of the economy. This establishes a relationship between the effort needed to execute a job and the specific factors that contribute to the performance of that effort. The study of working hours is essential because it will lead to the application of the best policies that could contribute to the enhancement of the quantity and the quality of the work done by the labor force. For sure, this will lead to important economic developments. Such an effort requires the solicitation of a good method of research to reach the proper and the correct findings.

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The comparative strategy of the study of the economic factors of the level of economic development, geographical location, and labor market policies is what makes it possible to compare the category of the working hours in Saudi Arabia with a selected number of countries members of the group known as G-20. The data resources are drawn from the General Authority for Statistics (GASTAT) data from the first quarter of the year 2019 to the fourth quarter of the year 2022. Much data is also taken from The International Labor Organization open data files incorporating critical labor force statistics for the fourth quarter of the year 2022. The statistics in that period of time were very much impacted by the negative consequences of the Corona virus. However, there is a steady pattern for the working hours of Saudi employees and non-Saudi employees that must be scrutinized.?

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Saudi employees registered a record of an average of 41 working hours per week. In comparison to non-Saudi workers, the average working load was 47 hours per week. The data differs when female workers are included. For instance, “non-Saudi female employees recorded the longest average weekly working hours”. Further categories are established to characterize the working hours of non-Saudi female workers. These employment subdivisions relate to both nationality and gender. The average working hours for them were 48 hours per week.? This is in accord with the maximum number of hours the Saudi Labor Law permits. The education level was a factor in the number of hours worked each week.?

Employees who have no education degree scored the longest average weekly working hours. “The average working hours for employees without an education degree reached 48 hours per week”. Their range of working was almost daily, or the economic necessity of working seven days a week. Opposite to such a situation was the fact that those employees who have doctorate degrees had a workload of only seven hours a week. The level of education also affected the comparison between Saudi and non-Saudi employees. The difference in the working hours was lowered as the level of the education of non-Saudi became higher. It was measured at a percentage of a seven percent decrease. Nevertheless, the type of economic activity was the principal factor in the differentiation of the working hours load for both Saudi and non-Saudi employees.?

The mining and quarrying sectors witnessed the highest numbers of working hours for Saudi citizens. Agan, as an average Saudi employee had 46 working hours per week. This data is the most recent since they relate to the fourth quarter of the year 2022. This is a 2% higher rate when compared with the average weekly hours Saudi citizens work in other economic activities. This sector’s average weekly hours are slightly higher than the average weekly hours of non-Saudi workers in most of the economic sectors. Saudi employees in the construction sector have an average of 43 working hours per week. This goes higher than the average weekly working hours found in most benchmarked countries by an increase of 6 hours. One reason for this increase is the expanded effort for the construction sector in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia where big infrastructure and mega projects such as NEOM, the Red Sea Project, and other projects are being built. All these useful data raises questions about the relationship between working hours in Saudi Arabia and the status of the Saudi economy.?

Overall, the working hours in Saudi Arabia reflect a positive attitude for her economy. But there is a need to increase labor productivity. Several policies are being debated such as having specific goals for any type of work corresponding with the national and regional plans for economic developments. There must be a balance between work and life. This is found in advanced economies whereby the trend is to reduce the working hours to enhance the quality of life. This can be materialized by having good productivity indicators. This can happen through periodic performance reports that can make a sustainable relationship between economic productivity and the effort needed to perform them. For sure, this will contribute to the development of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. There has to be a measurement of what the maximum hours are needed for a few economic activities. Few jobs require around 50 hours per week. There has to be a study on why they require these long hours. One finding shows that these long hours are worked by non-Saudi citizens especially in the accommodation and food-service sectors. Working hours can be a good average if there are good strategic objectives for the working of a team.?

These strategic goals can be defined in a simple manner. Coupled with that are the maintaining of a good, safe, and healthy working environment. The infrastructure of work is necessary for a good working hours experience. This will contribute to more investments in the study of working conditions, especially how to “analyze standardized data on average weekly working hours.” In conclusion, working hours reports verify a positive trend in the Saudi economy. The relationship between employment, productivity, and hourly rates are good. Many policies are being suggested now to collect more information on part-time employees and self-employment. Finally, this working hours analysis makes excellent insights into the ever-evolving economy of Saudi Arabia. Being able to project future prospects of the labor force in the Kingdom supports the arguments employment policies in Saudi Arabia are being developed and enhanced.

To view the report click here (nlo.gov.sa)