One of the possible byproducts of the Kingdom's intent to execute its labor and residency laws would be a short-term shortage of teachers in private schools. Schools that had been employing expatriate females who have accompanied their husbands to the Kingdom, or expatriate women living here with their families now find themselves at odds with the regulations that require all businesses to ensure that their employees are under their sponsorship. The law does not apply to Saudi women, and is meant to serve as an impetus to business owners, including those running schools, to consider suitable alternates such as the employment of a qualified cadre of nationals. The intent of the Labor Ministry, along with the Ministry of Interior, is clear. Once the three month grace period is over, all businesses should have brought themselves up to speed to comply with the law. Unlike most businesses, school administrators are somewhat fortunate in that the conclusion of the grace period falls during the summer holidays, allowing them some time to seek legal replacements without impacting their operation. It is possible that the new academic year will witness a surge of school fees as some schools may use the current situation to mine more profits, their owners claiming that there were no alternatives except to close down. Such actions are not uncommon in the region, with a variety of excuses being provided. A group, managing a cluster of schools in Dubai, recently announced that one of their schools would be closed by 2014 because it charged its students school fees of AED 6,000 to AED 10,000 annually. The justification behind it was, “it is impossible to run a good school with fees as low as AED 6,000. If the Knowledge and Human Development Authority (KHDA) does not allow us to restructure fees, no school charging fees below AED15,000 will survive in the UAE. In ten years they will all be gone.” Sunny Varkey, an Indian national and the founder and CEO of Global Education Management Systems (GEMS) which owns the school and 37 others added that, “For the last five years, we have been sustaining our old schools by compromising on quality. But we do not want to run bad schools. That is why we are forced to take tough decisions.” He also suggested that other schools could face the chopping block if permission was not granted by the authorities to raise fees. In an attempt to silence his critics on the annual increases of school fees at his institutions, Varkey states that many parents who want the best education for their children would be willing to spend on the extra fees to ensure their children receive top quality education. He contends that his lesser expensive schools also offer an excellent standard of education. “Traditionally, the education has been not-for-profit and totally not customer driven.” Not many parents would agree with that last charitable statement. One parent challenged, “This is all drama. Close your school down and let other organizations' come forward and open new schools with quality and low fees. Some international educational institutions should come forward immediately and make use of this opportunity by offering quality education at average cost and help the society.” Another parent believes this move to close Winchester is a disguised ploy. “He will close this school down and open another one in its place with another name and higher fees. I hope he doesn't get the permission otherwise he will try this strategy every time he wants to increase his income. Education is just a big business.” Earlier this year, a GEMS executive remarked that “new Indian schools have or are being built and all have been allowed to set much higher fees than these older schools. This has led to concern about our schools' ability to remain sustainable and their ability to continue to compete in the market for good teachers, something that is essential in order to provide a quality education for children.” If this is indeed the case then so be it. But it brings to mind a conversation I had with a prominent Turkish executive sometimes back in Riyadh. He was obsessed with providing the best for his children, including the best schools and facilities. He even made it a point to inspect the building facilities, the toilets and the cafeteria before considering enrolling his young ones. I asked him to rewind back to his school years. Were his school facilities the best around? Was the classroom bright and airy? Were the teachers impeccably qualified? Were the toilets clean and were the playgrounds well-managed? To each his answer was ‘no'. And here he was, a product of that same environment which today he considers as sub-standard for his kids, and yet he turned out brilliant in his field. In their drive to provide the best for their children, parents are often held hostage by the rising fees demanded by greedy school owners who would manipulate any situation to their benefit, or seduced into paying out more than they can afford to add to their children's growing comfort. But that in itself does not guarantee a quality education or a promising future. Sunny Varkey, the successful owner of the GEMS group, who only studied up to high school level in a small village in Kerala, India can attest to that.
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