Attitudes of Saudi young people toward working in retail sector

Alnafisah, Abdulelah Mohammed

Abstract

Saudi culture has its roots in a tribal nomadic society that was dependent on grazing, agriculture and fishing. After the discovery of oil, however, the economy began to grow rapidly, relying on income from oil exports and industries deriving products from petroleum. This led to rapid expansion in the labour market and the emergence of modern projects and new jobs for which Saudi citizens were under-qualified (Shaban et al., 1995). Consequently, the government was forced to employ foreign labour to fill these positions and began to rely heavily on expatriate workers, especially from poor countries, to work mostly in vocational, lower-skilled and manual jobs. These jobs became associated with cheap foreign labour and now have the lowest level of social status in contrast to government and administrative roles. As a result, these lower-paid jobs are viewed rather negatively, especially by the younger generation of Saudis who appear reluctant to undertake such work. These jobs are characterized by low wages, few holidays, long working hours and less prestige. Most people seek government jobs where they can enjoy comfortable offices, high salaries, long holidays and short working hours (Mellah, 2000; King Abdulaziz University, 2009). This has made the private sector dependent on a primarily expatriate work force, and this situation has caused increasing unemployment and substantial economic damage because of financial transfers abroad. The government was, therefore, forced to take action in order to solve this problem and in 1996 decided to apply a policy of Saudization to the labour market (Ministry of Labour, 2009). Yet, Saudization on its own has not been strong enough to create lasting change; salaries are still weak and this has caused low employment continuity, which has made the private sector lose confidence in recruiting Saudis. In addition, the educational system has proved inefficient in training graduates to fulfil the needs of the labour market. Thus, it has now become necessary to train Saudis in specialized centres and increase their salaries with government subsidies as an incentive. Therefore, the aim of government support is to reduce unemployment and qualify citizens for work. Also, it will be found in this research that the benefits of government support are not limited for reducing unemployment and qualifying citizens but working in lower-skilled jobs specifically in retail sector is a good opportunity for practicing what is taught and establishing a life career.
This study aims to test the success of government support (Saudization, training and financial support) in gaining potential benefits from encouraging Saudis to work in the retail sector, including the rehabilitation of young people and their ability to experience practical application during studies to solve the problem of inadequate state education and reduced unemployment from the perspectives of Saudi workers in the shop market. The study applies structural equation modelling to measure the impact of government support via mediator variables in a model that includes factors contributing to the reluctance of young people towards working in vocational and lower-skilled jobs (salary, domination of expats and negative perceptions regarding working in these jobs) and the willingness of Saudi workers to continue in work. The analysis assesses the relationships between the variables, and the direct and indirect effects in respect to a sample of Saudi workers in the retail sector. The researcher also used a triangulation technique of focus group interviewing with branch managers to confirm the results of the model, as well as investigating further how potential benefits can be obtained via working in retail and the reasons behind branch managers continuing in work since that time, even though there was great reluctance among Saudi young people with regard to working in this sector.

Citation

Alnafisah, A. M. Attitudes of Saudi young people toward working in retail sector. (Thesis). University of Hull. https://hull-repository.worktribe.com/output/4223880

• Thesis Type: Thesis
• Deposit Date: Feb 3, 2022
• Publicly Available Date: Feb 24, 2023
• Keywords: Business
• Public URL: https://hull-repository.worktribe.com/output/4223880
• Additional Information: Business School, The University of Hull
• Award Date: Jan 1, 2015