Saudi Arabia prohibits hiring of house worker under age of 21

Saudi Arabia has introduced new regulations for domestic workers, including a prohibition on hiring house workers under the age of 21.

The regulations stipulate that a maximum fine of SR20000 will be slapped on the employer in the event of violation of any provisions of the Regulation, Okaz/Saudi Gazette has learned from the details of the Regulation published on Friday in the Saudi official Umm Al-Qura Gazette.

The Regulation on Domestic Workers and the Like revealed that the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development (MHRSD) is the authority to receive complaints, settle them amicably, and monitor the violations committed by the employer or domestic worker without prejudicing the other rules in the Regulation.

According to the rules, all stipulated periods and dates are calculated in accordance with the Gregorian calendar, unless otherwise stated in the domestic work contract.

Any condition, reconciliation, or exoneration that violates the provisions of the Regulation will be deemed null and void during the validity period of the domestic work contract, unless it is more beneficial to the domestic worker.

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According to the Regulation, the amounts owed to the domestic worker or his heirs are considered first-degree privileged debts, and in order to collect them, the worker and his heirs have a lien on all the assets of the employer.

The competent court will not entertain any lawsuit filed by the worker, claiming one of the rights stipulated in the Regulation or arising from the work contract, after 12 months from the date of expiry of the contract, unless the plaintiff provides an acceptable excuse or the defendant acknowledge the right of the worker.