Hours of Work (Industry) Convention, 1919 (No. 1) - Saudi Arabia (Ratification: 1978)

Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2024, published 113rd ILC session (2025)

Hours of work

Article 2 of Convention No.1 and Article 3 of Convention No. 30. Limits on normal hours of work. The Committee notes that Section 98 of the Labour Law (Royal Decree No. M/51 dated 23/8/1426 AH of 27 September 2005 as amended) provides that a worker may not be employed for more than 8 hours per day if the employer adopts the daily standard, or more than 48 hours per week if the weekly standard is adopted. In this regard, the Committee wishes to recall that Articles 2 of Convention No. 1 and 3 of Convention No. 30 set a double limit – daily and weekly – to the working hours. This limit is cumulative and not alternative as it appears under section 98 of the Labour Law. The daily and weekly limits should therefore be 8 hours per day and 48 hours per week, and not 8 hours per day or 48 hours per week. The Committee therefore requests the Government to indicate the measures taken or envisaged to bring the national legislation into full conformity with these Articles of the Conventions.

Weekly rest

Articles 4 and 5 of Convention No. 14 and Articles 7(2) and 8(3) of Convention No. 106. Total or partial exceptions – Compensatory rest. The Committee notes that in reply to its previous comments concerning Section 105 of the Labour Law, (which provides that an exception to the provisions of Article 104 of the Labour Law, in remote areas and in jobs where the nature of work and operational conditions require continuous work, weekly rest periods accruing to the worker may be consolidated for up to eight weeks if the employer and the workers agree to that effect, subject to the Ministry’s approval) the Government indicates that under no circumstances the worker may be obligated to work during the weekly rest period or compensate it with financial compensation, and that fines are imposed on employers for non-compliance. Noting that Section 105 is still valid,the Committee requests the Government to indicate how it is ensured in practice that workers are not required to work excessively long periods without enjoying the weekly rest to which they are entitled (General Survey of 2018 on working-time instruments, paragraph 249).

Night work for women

Article 3 of Convention No. 89. Prohibition of night work for women. The Committee notes that the Government indicates in its report that section 150 of the Labour Law, which established the prohibition of night work for women, was repealed by Royal Decree No. M/5 of 26 August 2020. Recalling that pregnant and breastfeeding women may be particularly vulnerable to night work, the Committee requests the Government to supply information on the measures taken or envisaged to protect women who work at night, particularly in relation to maternity. Noting that the country is still bound by the Night Work (Women) (Revised) Convention, 1948 (No. 89), and recalling that this Convention will be open for denunciation between 27 February 2031 and 27 February 2032, the Committee draws the Government’s attention to the Night Work Convention, 1990 (No. 171), which is not devised as a gender-specific instrument but focuses on the protection of all those working at night (General Survey of 2018 on working-time instruments, paragraph 408).

Observation (CEACR) - adopted 2024, published 113rd ILC session (2025)

Legislative developments. Articles 8(2) of Convention No. 1, 11(3) of Convention No. 30, and 10(2) of Convention No. 106. Law enforcement and penalties. The Committee notes the entry into force of the Ministerial Decision No. 75913 of 3 December 2023, which increases the number of categories of establishments eligible for paying lower penalties and significantly reduces the amount of fines applicable in the event of violation of the provisions on working time with respect to Ministerial Decision No. 92768 of 3 December 2021. The Committee emphasizes the importance of ensuring that effective mechanisms are in place to guarantee compliance with working-time provisions, primarily through labour inspection and the application of dissuasive penalties for non-compliance (2018 General Survey on working-time instruments, paragraph 876). The Committee requests the Government to take the necessary measures to ensure that the penalties established in the national legislation for working-time violations (whether they are of an administrative, civil or penal nature) are sufficiently dissuasive to deter violations and are defined in proportion to the nature and gravity of the offence. The Committee also requests the Government to communicate information on the number and nature of penalties (administrative, civil, and penal) assessed and collected. It also refers to its comments made under the Labour Inspection Convention, 1947 (No. 81).

Article 6(2) of Convention No. 1 and Article 7(3) of Convention No. 30. Limits on additional hours of work. The Committee notes that in response to its previous comments, concerning the yearly limit of 480 hours of overtime established by the Ministerial Order No. 2832 of 2006, the Government indicates in its report that section 106 of the Labour Law provides that in case of temporary exceptions the effective hours of work, including overtime, shall not exceed 10 hours a day and 60 hours a week. It also indicates that it is doing its best to examine the Committee’s comments in consultation with relevant bodies and the social partners when undertaking any amendments to labour regulations and statutes, while taking into account the developments which occur in the labour market. The Committee regrets to note that the Implementing Regulations of the Labour Law and its Annexes, issued by Ministerial Decision No. 70273 of 20 December 2018, present in the official website of the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development, provides in its section 22 for a yearly overtime limit of 720 hours, which may be increased with the worker’s consent. The Committee recalls once again that the maximum number of additional hours, while not specifically prescribed in the Conventions, must be kept within reasonable limits in line with the general goal of the instruments to establish the 8-hour day and the 48-hour week as a legal standard for hours of work in order to protect against undue fatigue and ensure reasonable leisure and opportunities for recreation and social life (2018 General Survey on working-time instruments, paragraph 119). Consequently, the Committee requests the Government to take the necessary measures to ensure that both in law and in practice the limits to overtime are reasonable.

The Committee is raising other matters in a request addressed directly to the Government.

Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2013, published 103rd ILC session (2014)

Article 6(2) of the Convention. Limits on additional hours of work. In its previous comment, the Committee drew the Government’s attention to the fact that the Ministerial Order No. 2832 of 2006 fixing the overall number of authorized overtime at 480 hours per year is not consistent with the spirit of the Convention, which calls for reasonable limits prescribed in line with the general goal of the instrument, namely an eight-hour working day and 48-hour working week, as a legal standard sufficient to protect workers’ health and well-being. As the Committee has pointed out on several occasions, the objective of a reasonable annual limit is to avoid the risk of abuse by preventing excessive fatigue and ensuring reasonable leisure and opportunities for recreation and social life. The Committee recalls that at the time of the adoption of this Convention, the limits considered to be permissible amounted to a total of 60 hours a week in the case of permanent exceptions (work essentially intermittent or preparatory/complementary work) and 150 hours a year in the case of temporary exceptions (exceptional cases of pressure of work). As regards the non-industrial sector, at the time of the adoption of the Hours of Work (Commerce and Offices) Convention, 1930 (No. 30), such limits amounted to ten hours a day and 60 hours a week for intermittent work and ten hours a day and 54 hours a week for preparatory or complementary work. In its latest report, the Government explains that the objective of the adoption of the Ministerial Order No. 2832 was to establish a specific maximum limit as required under section 107 of the Labour Code. The Government further indicates that many enterprises do not reach this limit. The Committee requests the Government to consider appropriate steps in order to lower the annual limit of permissible overtime set out in Ministerial Order No. 2832 and bring it closer to the reasonable limits envisaged at the time of the adoption of the Convention. The Committee also requests the Government to provide statistical information, if available, concerning the number of workers effectively performing 480 overtime hours of work per year and the types of enterprises, industrial or others, which are mostly affected by such overtime work.

Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2009, published 99th ILC session (2010)

The Committee notes the adoption of a new Labour Law (Royal Decree No. M/51 of 27 September 2005), which essentially reproduces the provisions on hours of work of the previous Labour Law (Royal Decree No. M/21 of 15 November 1969).

Article 6, paragraph 1, of the Convention. Permanent exceptions. The Committee notes that section 108 of the new Labour Law provides that, for preparatory and intermittent jobs, the maximum working hours will be specified by regulations. The Committee requests the Government to indicate whether these regulations have already been issued and, if so, to transmit copies.

Article 6, paragraph 2. Maximum limits on additional hours of work. The Committee notes that under section 106 of the new Labour Law, the actual working hours in the case of annual inventory activities, accident, imminent loss of perishable materials or seasonal activities may not exceed ten hours a day or 60 hours a week while the maximum overtime hours allowed per year is to be determined by a decision of the Minister of Labour. In this connection, the Committee notes the adoption of Ministerial Order No. 2832 of 2006 which fixes the maximum of additional hours per year at 480 hours. The Committee considers that despite the fact that the Convention does not prescribe any specific limit to the total number of additional hours which may be worked during a specified period in case of permanent or temporary exceptions, a total of 480 hours a year may not be considered consistent with the requirements of the Convention. The Committee recalls that the question of fixing a reasonable annual limit (in the absence of any specific provision in the Labour Law of 1969), in conformity with the Convention’s objectives, has been the subject of numerous comments over the past 25 years.

In this regard, the Committee wishes to refer to paragraph 144 of its General Survey of 2005 on hours of work in which it noted that even though the establishment of specific limits to the total number of additional hours is left to the competent authorities, this does not mean that such authorities have unlimited discretion in this regard. Such limits must be “reasonable” and they must be prescribed in line with the general goal of the instruments, namely to establish the eight-hour day and 48-hour week as a legal standard of hours of work in order to provide protection against excessive fatigue and to ensure reasonable leisure and opportunities for recreation and social life. The Committee also wishes to draw the Government’s attention to the reference made in the same paragraph of the General Survey to the preparatory work that led to the adoption of Convention No. 1 which gives some guidance as to what may be considered under the Convention as permissible limits on the number of additional hours. More concretely, as far as hours of work in industry are concerned, the limits considered to be permissible amounted to a total of 60 hours a week in the case of permanent exceptions and 150 hours a year in the case of temporary exceptions, or 100 hours a year for non-seasonal activities. As far as hours of work in commerce and offices are concerned, at the time of the adoption of Convention No. 30, such limits amounted to ten hours a day and 60 hours a week for intermittent work and ten hours a day and 54 hours a week for preparatory or complementary work. In light of the preceding observations, the Committee requests the Government to consider all appropriate action, including amending Ministerial Order No. 2832 of 2006, in order to establish a reasonable limit on the number of additional hours in case of certain exceptions and thus bring the national legislation into conformity with the requirements of this Article of the Convention.

Part VI of the report form. Application in practice. The Committee would be grateful if the Government would provide together with its next report up to date information on the application of the Convention in practice including, for instance, statistics on the number of workers covered by the relevant legislation, extracts from labour inspection reports showing the number and nature of infringements of the working time legislation observed and the sanctions imposed, statistical information on the hours of overtime worked in the cases covered by Articles 3 and 6 of the Convention, any difficulties encountered in the implementation of the Convention, etc.

Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2004, published 93rd ILC session (2005)

Part V of the report form. In addition to the information that the Government is supplying to the Committee under the Labour Inspection Convention, 1947 (No. 81), the Committee requests the Government to provide information on violations of limits placed on the hours of work (Articles 2 and 4 of the Convention) and supplementary hours of work (Article 6), as well as any other information that would highlight practical difficulties related to the application of the working time provisions, as requested in Part V of the report form.

Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 1999, published 88th ILC session (2000)

The Committee notes the information on the application of Articles 4 and 6, paragraph 2, of the Convention contained in the Government's last report. It also notes the Government's statement that the Convention is applied satisfactorily in practice. In this connection, it asks the Government to supply additional information in its next report, such as extracts of labour inspection reports and any relevant available data or statistics, as requested in Part VI of the report form.

Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 1994, published 81st ILC session (1994)

1. The Committee notes the information supplied by the Government on the application of Article 4 of the Convention. It takes note of the Government's statement that, since shift work is governed by section 147 of the Labour Code, working hours in establishments where work is carried out in shifts may not exceed eight hours per day or 48 hours per week.

2. With regard to Article 6, paragraph 2, the Committee notes Ministerial Order No. 16 of 18.13.1397 H, of which the Government provided a copy. It notes the Government's explanations concerning the determination of maximum amount of overtime and the information to the effect that recourse is made to such overtime only in exceptional situations where there is a heavy workload and is subject to supervision by the competent labour office, and that, in practice, there has been no abuse of overtime.

3. With reference to its previous comments, the Committee notes with interest the Government's indication that a circular has recently been issued reminding employers that they are required to post working hours in accordance with Article 8, paragraph 1.

4. Lastly, the Committee asks the Government to provide information on the practical effect given to the Convention, particularly Article 4 and Article 6, paragraph 2 including extracts of the reports of the inspectorate and the labour offices, as requested in Part VI of the report form, and any other relevant information or statistics that are available.

Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 1989, published 76th ILC session (1989)

The Committee notes the information communicated by the Government in its report. It would be grateful if the Government would furnish additional information on the following points:

Article 4 of the Convention. The Committee refers to its previous direct request in which it noted that the question of working hours in continuous shift work was still under study. Please provide information on any developments there may have been in this connection and indicate whether any ministerial orders have been issued on the basis of section 148 of the Labour Code.

Article 6, paragraph 2. Please communicate a copy of Ministerial Order No. 16 of 18/1/1397 H, which is not available in the Office, and/or any order issued under section 152 of the Labour Code relevant to working hours in the cases contemplated in paragraphs (a), (b) and (c) of this section.

As concerns temporary exceptions, as the Committee has already pointed out in its previous comments, section 150(c) of the Labour Code allows normal working hours to be exceeded by two hours per day to deal with a heavy workload. This limit might imply considerably too many weekly, monthly or annual working hours which, in the Committee's opinion, could be in direct contradiction to the spirit in which this Convention was drafted (see in this connection the Committee's 1967 General Survey on this instrument, International Labour Conference, 51st Session, 1967, Report III (Part 4), third part, paragraph 239). The Committee requests the Government to fix a reasonable annual limit, in conformity with the Convention's objectives and on the basis of what is provided in section 150 of the Labour Code, for cases listed in paragraph (a) of section 150, for recourse to additional hours to deal with an overload of work.

Article 8, paragraph 1. The Committee notes that the Government is examining the possibility of taking measures through regulations to supplement section 9 of the Labour Code and require establishments employing fewer than 20 workers to post working hours as required by this Article of the Convention. It trusts that the Government will soon take the measures necessary to give full effect to this provision of the Convention.