Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2025, published 114th ILC session (2026)

Saudi Arabia

Equal Remuneration Convention, 1951 (No. 100) (Ratification: 1978)
Discrimination (Employment and Occupation) Convention, 1958 (No. 111) (Ratification: 1978)

In order to provide a comprehensive view of the issues relating to the application of ratified Conventions on equality, the Committee considers it appropriate to examine the Conventions Nos 100 (equal remuneration) and 111 (discrimination in employment and occupation) together.

Convention No. 111 – National policy to promote equality of opportunity and treatment in respect of employment and occupation 

Articles 1 to 3. National policy for equality of opportunity and treatment. Disability. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that, in 2024 a total of 88,891 employees with disabilities worked in the private sector and 27,725 in the public sector, and that work is under way to adopt a National Strategy for Persons with Disabilities. The Committee asks the Government to report on any developments in the adoption of the National Strategy for Persons with Disabilities, as well as on any detected cases of discrimination based on disability. 

Articles 1 to 3. National policy for equality of opportunity and treatment. Sex. Sexual harassment. The Government informs about a number of measures taken, including that: (1) it has carried out a number of training and awareness-raising measures about sexual harassment and the corresponding legislative framework to address it; and (2) the Human Rights Commission has established a specialized group to support victims of harassment and carries out training programmes, including to qualify specialists to detect cases, and awareness and educational programmes to disseminate a culture of human rights. Regarding access to procedures, the Government indicates that: (1) the Act on the Protection of Whistleblowers, Witnesses, Experts and Victims (Royal Decree No. M/148 of 8/8/1445 AH), adopted in 2024, protects victims, whistle-blowers, witnesses or experts, as well as their relatives and others who may be at risk, including by establishing criminal penalties for offences against them and creating the “Centre for the Protection of Whistle-blowers, Investigators, Experts and Victims”, which provides assistance in transfers, identity concealing, and legal, psychological and social counselling; (2) Royal Decision No. 64595 of 19/9/1444 AH requires all Government bodies to implement the necessary procedures and mechanisms for dealing with harassment in the workplace, leading to the launch of the service “Reporting behavioural violations in the workplace” service at the MHRSD and an anti-harassment policy in the Ministry of Education. The Committee encourages the Government to continue promoting and raising awareness of the legal framework and mechanisms available in cases of sexual harassment and asks it to provide information on the number of cases of sexual harassment at work addressed by the competent authorities, the sanctions imposed and the remedies granted. The Committee asks the Government to provide information on the procedure established for examining complaints of sexual harassment at work

Promoting women’s employment. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that one of the objectives of the 2023 National Equality Policy is to enhance the participation of women in the labour market, and that the Saudi Vision 2030 includes measures to promote women’s empowerment and help achieve balance in family responsibilities, such as the MHRSD resolution No. 54694 of 13/3/1443 on Regulations of Private Childcare Centres. It indicates that numerous measures have been taken, such as: (1) a review of women empowerment programmes to assess their impact and effectiveness; (2) training and vocational guidance services to support women’s transition from education to the labour market and their return to work following a career interruption; (3) initiatives to increase women’s presence in middle and higher leadership positions in the public and private sectors, such as the National Platform for Saudi Women Leaders (Qiyadiyat), the Gender Balance Centre’s National Programme for administrative leaders, and an alliance with more than 29 private sector companies to advance women in leadership positions; (4) opening and supporting women’s access to judicial, security, cybersecurity and military positions. The Committee takes note of the Government’s statistics on the economic participation rate of Saudi women (from 17 per cent in 2017 to 35.9 per cent in 2023), the proportion of women in the labour market (from 17.4 per cent in 2017 to 36 per cent in 2023) and in management positions (from 28.6 in 2017 to 43.7 per cent in 2023), and the number of women who benefited from several programmes until 2023, including the Qurrah Programme, the freelancing work initiative and the Flexible Working System “MRN”. The Committee asks the Government to continue providing information on: (i) the measures taken to promote women’s participation in employment and occupation, in particular those aimed to promote a more equitable sharing of family responsibilities between men and women; and (ii) statistics regarding women’s participation in the labour market, disaggregated by sector or occupation and management level. 

Article 5. Special protection measures. Restrictions on women’s employment. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that the Labour Law does not currently include any restriction on women’s work, and informs that, according to section 131bis of the Labour Law (approved by Royal Decree No. (M/5) dated 7/1/1442 AH), the Minister shall determine the professions and jobs that are deemed dangerous or hazardous and are likely to expose the worker to abnormal risk or harm, and shall determine categories of workers that are permanently or temporarily banned from occupying said professions and jobs or the conditions for occupying said professions and jobs. The Committee asks the Government to provide information on any decisions issued by the Minister determining the professions and jobs that are deemed dangerous or hazardous for women. 

Convention No. 100 – Principle of equal remuneration for men and women for work of equal value 

Articles 1 to 4. Assessing and addressing the gender pay gap and its underlying causes. The Government indicates that according to studies from the Gender Balance Centre (GBC), which comprised a statistical analysis and a field study on a sample of employees, there may be some individual practices that fail to properly implement laws and regulations regarding equal pay. It informs that, in the first quarter of 2024, the average monthly wage was 6,163 Saudi Riyals (SAR) for women, and SAR 6,253 for men (SAR 43 for women and SAR 46 for men per hour). The Government indicates it has adopted several measures to promote women’s participation in the labour market, of which the Committee took note above and that the GBC has several training initiatives, including training on the concept of gender balance. The Committee asks the Government to provide information on any follow-up measures adopted to address the practices that fail to implement laws and regulations on equal pay identified by the GBC study. It also asks the Government to continue to provide statistical information on the gender pay gap.

Articles 1 to 3. Application of the principle of equal remuneration. The Government informs that: (1) the Unified Regulations for the Work Environment in Private Sector Establishments (Decision No. 4906 of 8/1/1442 AH), prohibits employers from discriminating in wages between men and women workers for work of equal value; (2) it continues to conduct awareness-raising activities through the Labour Culture Initiative and to train labour inspectors on regulations prohibiting discrimination and the corresponding penalties; (3) the Saudi Standard Classification of Occupations Structure, approved by Cabinet Resolution No. 660 dated 24/10/1441 AH, covering all economic activities, is aligned with the International Standard Classification of Occupations (ISCO-08) and the European Skills/competences, Qualifications and Occupations (ESCO), and is adopted in line with job evaluations taking into account general behavioural and technical competencies. The Committee asks the Government to provide information on the measures taken to provide employers with guidance to ensure that, when determining the remuneration corresponding to job categories in their salary scales, employers undertake an objective job evaluation that is not gender biased, is based on objective criteria and does not undervalue skills or competencies that are traditionally female. The Committee also asks the Government to continue providing information on the awareness-raising activities it organizes on the concept of “work of equal value”. The Committee once again asks the Government to provide information on any complaints of unequal remuneration between men and women addressed by the competent authorities, and the outcome thereof.

Conventions Nos   111 and 100 – Application in practice

Monitoring and enforcement. The Committee takes note of the Government’s information that the MHRSD investigated 53 cases of discrimination between 2021 and 2024 imposing the corresponding fines, and that labour inspectors subsequently monitor establishments to ensure that the violation has ceased. The Committee observes that penalties for discrimination have substantially decreased over time, more specifically from SAR 20.000 in 2019 (approximately 5330 US dollars) (resolution No. 178743 of 27/09/1440 AH, violation 43) to SAR 1.000-3.000 in 2023 (approximately 266-800 US dollars) depending on the size of the enterprise (Resolution No. 75913, of 19/5/1445 AH, violation 22). The Committee emphasizes that the full implementation of the Convention usually requires the adoption of a number of measures, including the establishment of dissuasive sanctions. The Committee asks the Government to report on the reasons for the decrease in the amount of the sanctions (if we have an official source demonstrating this) and to ensure that the sanctions provided for discrimination in employment and occupation are proportionate and sufficiently dissuasive.