Night Work (Women) Convention (Revised), 1948 (No. 89) - 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).

Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2008, published 98th ILC session (2009)

Article 3 of the Convention. Prohibition of night work for women. The Committee notes the adoption of the new Labour Code, Royal Decree No. M/51 of 27 September 2005, section 150 of which essentially reproduces section 161 of the previous Labour Code of 1969, and thus continues to give effect to the basic requirement of the Convention.  It also notes the Government’s reference to Ministerial Order No. 2838 of 2006 which exempts from the application of section 150 of the Labour Code: (i) work in education, charity or health services; (ii) family undertakings; (iii) cases of force majeure or urgency; and (iv) work to preserve perishable materials.

More generally, while noting that the new Labour Code remains fully consistent with the requirements of the Convention, the Committee wishes to recall that contrary to earlier times when emphasis was placed primarily on protecting women from working conditions that were excessively arduous and hazardous to their health, the current trend is to give greater importance to promoting equality between men and women. For this reason, differences in treatment between men and women can only be permitted on an exceptional basis, or where they are justified by the existence of overriding biological or physiological reasons, as in the case of pregnancy and maternity. It is in this sense that the Committee in paragraph 161 of its General Survey of 2001 on the night work of women in industry called for “a critical re-examination of provisions which are assumed to be protective towards women, but which in fact have the effect of hindering the achievement of effective equality by perpetuating or consolidating their disadvantaged employment situation”. While recognizing the need for a balanced and phased approach in eliminating gender inequalities, due regard being paid to national circumstances, traditions and practices, the Committee invites the Government, in consultation with the social partners, to consider the possibility of modernizing its legislation by ratifying either the 1990 Protocol to Convention No. 89, which opens up the possibility for women to work at night under certain conditions, or the Night Work Convention, 1990 (No. 171), which applies to all night workers in all branches and occupations. The Committee recalls that the Government may wish to seek the assistance of the Office with a view to better understanding the possibilities and implications of each of these two instruments and revising existing legislation accordingly. It requests the Government to keep the Office informed of any decision taken or envisaged in this regard.

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

The Committee notes that according to the Government’s report no new legislative or other measures affecting the application of the Convention have been adopted and that the Convention continues to be implemented in a satisfactory manner.

The Committee takes this opportunity to refer to paragraphs 191-202 of its 2001 General Survey on the night work of women in industry, in which it observed that the present trend is no doubt to move away from a blanket prohibition against women’s night work and to give the social partners the responsibility for determining the extent of the permitted exemptions. It also noted that many countries are in the process of easing or eliminating legal restrictions on women’s employment during the night with the aim of improving women’s opportunities in employment and strengthening non-discrimination. The Committee further recalled that member States are under an obligation to review periodically their protective legislation in light of scientific and technological knowledge with a view to revising all gender-specific provisions and discriminatory constraints. This obligation stems from Article 11(3) of the 1979 United Nations Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (to which parenthetically Saudi Arabia became party in 2000), as later reaffirmed in point 5(b) of the 1985 ILO resolution on equal opportunities and equal treatment for men and women in employment.

More concretely, the Committee considered that the Protocol of 1990 to Convention No. 89 was designed as a tool for smooth transition from outright prohibition to free access to night employment, especially for those States that wished to offer the possibility of night employment to women workers but felt that some institutional protection should remain in place to avoid exploitative practices and a sudden worsening of the social conditions of women workers. It also suggested that greater efforts should be made by the Office to help those constituents who are still bound by the provisions of Convention No. 89, and who are not yet ready to ratify the new Night Work Convention, 1990 (No. 171), to realize the advantages of modernizing their legislation in line with the provisions of the Protocol. Therefore, the Committee invites the Government to give favourable consideration to the ratification of the 1990 Protocol which affords greater flexibility in the application of the Convention while remaining focused on the protection of female workers. Finally, the Committee would be grateful to the Government for providing, in accordance with Part V of the report form, up-to-date information concerning the practical application of the Convention, including for instance extracts from reports of inspection services, statistics on the number of workers covered by relevant legislation, the application of the exceptions allowed under the provisions of the Convention, etc.