Saudi media said yesterday, Monday, that a decision was issued to allow salary cuts in the private sector in the Kingdom to 40% with the possibility of terminating employee contracts, which sparked a wave of controversy and booing on social media.

The Saudi newspaper Al-Sharq Al-Awsat indicated that the decision allows the employer to terminate employee contracts after 6 months of "force majeure," adding that the decisions come within the framework of what the Saudi labor market is facing as a result of the closing procedures to combat the Corona pandemic.

And some major companies in Saudi Arabia started to implement this decision, according to what was revealed by emails sent to companies employees, such as Almarai and Nesma.

Saudi Arabia allows 40% reduction in salaries in the private sector and

cutting employees who have prepared to receive the returnees ....

Moaz Asfour (@ LGGEM9VFuFUtRKx) May 5, 2020

Mugridon deplored the decision that targeted employees, including citizens who "pay the price of mistakes", Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, and stressed that the priority in reducing salaries must be from the salaries of ministers and senior officials and not from the "poor" employees.

The Saudi citizen has been crying for years: (# The salary is not enough for the need), and now the government allows the private sector to reduce salaries by 40% !!!
It was the first of the government to start reducing the salaries of its ministers and senior officials, instead of reducing the salaries of these poor people!

- Turki Al Shalhoub (@TurkiShalhoub) May 5, 2020

The former security advisor at the Ministry of Interior, Saud Al-Musaibeh, said that there are 12 million expatriates - in addition to the violators of residency - demands to deport half of them to allow the Saudis to work and end the unemployment crisis.

We had 12 million non-residency expatriates and we could bear their presence, even though almost half could be done without. Now with this pandemic, I hope that they will leave so that the Saudi and Saudi Arabia have the opportunity to work, and thus we finish unemployment at all, God willing, and the topic is training and persistence, and the Saudi will be responsible.

Dr. Saud Saleh Al-Musaibih (@ 269saud4) May 5, 2020

Saudis also criticized ignoring prominent news accounts in the Kingdom for the decision, which constituted a clear injustice to private sector employees, they said.

In light of the crisis # Corona:

Canada raises the minimum wages and #Saudi_General is cutting salaries 40% pic.twitter.com/2eUu4eRSer

- Abdulaziz Al-Hudhaif (@ Hudhaif9) May 5, 2020

Journalist Muhammad Al-Bishi asked about the decision, "Does it make sense that the billionaires’ profits for the past years do not cover 40% or even 20% of the salaries of Saudis in those companies for the period exceeding the crisis? ”

Some large companies and well-known brands have begun to reduce the salaries of their Saudi employees by about 40%, based on Article 41 of the Labor Law, and the state bears the remaining 60 %..Is it possible that the billionaires profits for the past years do not cover 40% or even 20% of the salaries of Saudis in those companies for a period Overcoming the crisis !? pic.twitter.com/gGC8jwoHpL

- Mohammed Al-Bishi (@albishi) May 4, 2020