Training and Qualification Contract is crucial in developing the professional competencies and skills of the private sector’s workers. Thus, Saudi Arabia established, through the Labour Law, explicit provisions to regulate the said Contract in a manner that guarantees protecting the Parties’ rights, fostering transparency, providing effective training environment that contributes to improving the skills level and balancing between the labour market requirements and the private sector needs.

This article aims to clarify the provisions of the Training and Qualification Contract in Saudi Arabia, while also highlighting the legal procedures and rights for both workers and employers as outlined in the Labour Law. Additionally, this article aims at assisting companies and employees in understanding how to regulate these contracts, balancing workers’ professional skills and their rights, along with fostering compliance with Saudi Labour Laws and Regulations related to training and qualification in the private sector.

What is Training and Qualification Contract in Saudi Arabia?

A Training and Qualification Contract is a formal agreement that obligates an employer to train or qualify an individual for a specific occupation. Taking into account that the said contract shall be in writing, it shall identify the profession for which the training is provided and stipulate the fixed remuneration due to the trainee for each stage of training, assuming that it is identified according to the pieces or production. Moreover, the rights and duties of the Trainee and the Employer shall be clarified in the Contract, and whether the training and qualification take place in a facility owned by the Employer or any other facilities.

The provisions associated with the annual leaves, public holidays, maximum working hours, daily and weekly breaks, occupational safety and health rules, and work injuries, its conditions and the resolutions issues by the Minister of Human Resources and Social Development shall be applicable to the Training and Qualification Contract.

Develop a Policy to Train Saudi Workers

Employers shall develop a policy to train and qualify Saudi workers in order to consider their skills and improve their level in art, administrative, occupational and etc. Furthermore, each Employer shall replace non-Saudi workers with Saudi workers, adhering to the following conditions and rules:

• Preparing a professional description for the tasks and duties of the offered occupation in accordance with the approved job classification and description along with identifying the occupational requirements in that light.
• Creating occupational paths for occupation classes that are obvious to its workers.
• Providing training and qualification programmes for the occupations whose tasks require such programmes in accordance with the approved job classification and description, in addition to seeking knowledge of the latest technologies used in performing such tasks and job duties and working to enable Saudi employees to receive training and qualification accordingly.
• Setting time frames based on the occupational classes and levels for all the occupations occupied by non-Saudis allows providing the means proper to train and qualify Saudi workers to replace non-Saudi workers.
• Allowing Saudi workers to occupy the occupations occupied by non-Saudi workers, helping them in gaining experience and training them on the job, which would help achieving clear career paths for various job categories, and providing training and qualification programmes for jobs whose tasks require such programmes in accordance with the approved job classification and description.
• Registering the Non-Saudi workers replaced by Saudi workers.

Without prejudice the training, qualification and up skilling conditions and terms stipulated in the Franchising and other contracts, employers shall train and qualify non-Saudi workers, especially if the employer incurs their study fees, to handle its work.

Develop a Training and Qualification Programme

The training programme shall be centered around the skill trained by the worker, the terms and conditions considered in the training, training term and hours, theoretical and practical training programmes, the examination method and the certificates granted in this regard. Thus, the establishment shall follow the below standards and rules:

• Preparing various training programmes for each occupation needed by the establishment in its work. Such programmes shall aim at raising the occupational efficiency and skills of the trained workers needed by the employer and help achieving its objectives.
• The established shall prioritize providing the training programmes for the occupations, crafts and jobs most needed for its operations, especially those works occupied by non-Saudi, with the aim of gradually replacing non-Saudi workers with Saudi workers in these jobs.
• In case there are any occupational standards or skills tests in any sector mandated and binding by the competent government authorities, such as the Saudi Commission for Health Specialties (SCFHS) or another, the occupational standards stipulated by the said establishment shall be no less than such occupational standards.
• The training programme term shall be no less than 16 training hours.
• The term of the worker's employment, after it completes the training, is at the discretion of the employer. However, it shall not exceed a term similar to the term of the training programme undergone by the worker; this applies in case the employment contract is indeterminate or if the remaining term of the contract, in the case of fixed-term contracts, is less than the period equivalent to the duration of the training program.
• The said programmes shall include both theoretical and practical training at one or several levels ranging according to the worker’s skill and productivity level; it shall increase the worker’s skill and professional efficiency.
• The training programme topics shall relate directly or indirectly to the trainees’ occupation nature.
• In case the trainee passes the programme's exam, the establishment shall present the ministry with a passing certificate that includes the student's name, the name and type of the programme, the training term, and the passing year via the ministry's electronic platform.
• The employer shall incur the training expenses. The establishment may conduct the training at the workplace in case that the training was approved by the Technical Vocational Training Corporation or assign it to one of the centers or training institutes approved by a competent authority or electronic training platforms. Additionally, the training may be outside or inside Saudi Arabia.
• The establishment shall record the training information for each Saudi employee, including the training address, kind, and duration, the training provider authority, the training providing method, and the test results if the student passes the exam within a month of the training date.

The employer shall charge the worker with the training and qualifying expenses spent in the following cases:

• In case the worker decides to terminate the training or the qualification before the specified termination date without a legitimate excuse.
• In case the worker’s employment contract terminates under one of the termination clauses, in which the worker does not obtain an end-of-service gratuity, a notice, or compensation unless the worker is on probation, i.e., the worker is still under training or qualification period, or during the term specified by the employer for the employee to work for him after completing the training or qualification programme for the remaining term.
• In case a worker resigned or left the work without notice while retaining all his statutory rights during the training or qualification term or during the term specified by the employer for the employee to work for him after completing the training or qualification program for the remaining term.

Additionally, the training required ratio is not mandatory for establishments employing 50 or more workers in case the specified localization percentage in the National Initiative for Localizing Occupation (sectors) programme is less than 12% of their total workforce. In such cases, it is sufficient to provide annual training to all Saudi employees.

Training the Students and Graduates of Universities, Colleges, Institutes and Centers

The Minister of Human Resources and Social Development shall obligate establishments to accept a specified number or percentage of the students and graduates of universities, colleges, institutes, and centers with the aim of training them and completing their work experience, provided that it conducts a training contract between the trainee and the employer, in which the conditions stipulated in the Labour Law shall be applied, and the establishment shall provide the trainee with a remuneration.

Training or Qualification Contract Termination Regulations in Saudi Arabia

The employer may terminate the training or qualification contract if it is proved that the trainee or the person undergoing a qualification is not able to complete the training or qualification programme usefully according to the periodic evaluation stipulated by the establishment providing the training or qualification.

The trainee or the person undergoing a qualification is entitled to terminate the contract. However, the Party desiring to terminate the contract shall notify the other Party of its desire a week prior to the termination specified date. Neither Party may claim the other Party for compensation unless the contract stipulates otherwise.

Please find: Employment Contract Termination Rights and Obligations: A Comprehensive Legal Overview

In conclusion, awareness of the training and qualification contract in Saudi Arabia is essential for ensuring a fair and effective work environment, as it contributes to developing efficiencies and enhancing productivity in the private sector. Moreover, comprehending such provisions assists the company in regulating training programmes that conform to the Laws. It also grants the employees confidence in protecting their rights and developing their occupational paths. Compliance with such rules enhances work quality and increases occupational success opportunities, fostering the national efforts directed to achieve sustainable development and building an economy based on knowledge and efficiency.

The Formulation and Revision Services of the Training and Qualification Contract

. Dr Fahad Alrefaei & Partners Consulting & Law Firm provides all the legal services related to the Training and Qualification Contract with the aim of ensuring the trainees and the company's rights and regulating their obligations according to the Labour Law. The most prominent legal services related to such contract are:

• Conducting the contracts of the trainee employees
• Ensuring the conformity with International Laws
• Counseling on the Training and Qualification Contract
• Resolving the disputes arising out of Training Contracts

For seeking Formulation and Revision Services of the Training and Qualification Contract, feel free to contact Dr Fahad Alrefaei & Partners Consulting & Law Firm on 920012753 or via E-mail: [email protected]. We are always very pleased to receive your consultations.

Please find: Labour Lawsuits Services