The number of citizens joining the private sector workforce for the first time in Saudi Arabia doubled in July, exceeding 34.6 thousand citizens, compared to 16.5 thousand in June, more than doubling in just one month.
A recent report issued by the National Labor Observatory revealed that the total number of workers in the private sector reached 11.473 million in July, compared to 11.409 million workers last June. Meanwhile, the number of citizens exceeded 2.342 million, compared to 2.340 million in the previous month.
The report revealed that the number of residents working in the private sector in July reached approximately 9.131 million, compared to June, when the number of foreign workers was 9.068 million.
The number of Saudi males working in the private sector was approximately 1.385 million and 956,600 females in the previous July, compared to 1.383 million males and 957,700 females last June.
Labour Force
The National Labor Observatory recently revealed that the labor force participation rate in the Kingdom was approximately 55% in 2016. This rate increased to 61.2% in 2021, making Saudi Arabia the highest among the G20 countries with an increase of 6.2%, followed by Japan in second place with only a 2.2% increase.
The recent National Observatory for Labor report revealed that the growth rate of females in the labor market reached 5.5%, compared to 2.1% in Australia. It is lower than other G20 countries. Meanwhile, the growth rate for males in the Kingdom was 1.7%, compared to 1.5% in Australia, which is also lower than other G20 nations.
The factors driving the growth of the workforce in the Saudi labor market are based on several key reasons, including: supportive initiatives for female participation, a high proportion of youth among the population, and the attractiveness of the market in the Kingdom due to economic growth.
According to the latest report, the Kingdom is ranked among the highest countries in male labor force participation rates, holding the second highest rate after Indonesia, followed by the other G20 countries.
G20
Saudi Arabia is among the top 10 countries in the G20 in terms of employment rate, reaching 57%. It achieved the highest rank in the change in the female employment rate, which increased by 10% from 2016 to 2021. Meanwhile, the country recorded a high male employment rate of 76%.
The National Observatory of Labor stated that the factors for increasing employment rates in the Kingdom lie in designing sectoral strategies to develop human capital, aligning educational outcomes with the skills required in the labor market, and supporting job growth and localization across various sectors.
Increased employment rates are influenced by the development of future workforce skills, adaptation to modern work patterns (such as remote and flexible work), and supportive policies like income support and social protection. The unemployment rate for Saudis fell to 7.6% in the first quarter of this year from 7.8% in the last quarter of 2023, approaching the “Vision 2030” target of 7%.
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