five workers in Abha have sought the advice of lawyers after not being paid by their employer for eight months. The workers, some of whom are employed at an Abha market and others at a local school in Ahad Rufeida, claim that in addition to outstanding salaries the company for which they work has also cancelled medical insurance for eight of them. Commenting on the case, lawyer Khaled Bin Ramadan Al-Dagas said that the law requires their outstanding salaries to be paid. “The Minister of Labor two years ago gave workers the right to report employers to labor offices should they not receive payment of salaries for a period of three months,” Al-Dagas said. “They were also given the right to change sponsors without requiring the consent of their employers.” Al-Dagas said the law also makes it mandatory for employers to obtain employees' residency permits as quickly as possibly and acquire health certificates and medical insurance for them. Al-Dagas said that the 25 unpaid workers should take their case up with their regional labor office with a view to prosecuting their employer. “If the labor office fails to resolve the case, then they should take it up with the governorate,” he said. An official from the company that employs the 25 men said they only had two months' salary outstanding, a claim denied by the employees.
