Saudi Arabia's Ministry of Labor is working on a move to increase the minimum wage for Saudis under the Nitaqat program, said a report.

The ministry is preparing a comprehensive list to raise Saudi wages in the private sector by amending the calculation system in the labor market, said the Arab News report.

Under the plan, Saudi employees will get SR4,000 instead of SR3,000 and SR6,000 instead of SR4,000. If the employee receives SR6,000 and more, the average Saudi calculations in the nationalization program will be raised, said the Arab News report.
 
Calculating the average nationalization rates will be done scientifically: If the salary of a Saudi national exceeds SR6,000 and reaches SR12,000, he will be counted in the system as two employees, it said.

The ministry stated earlier that each Saudi employee who gets SR3,000 will count as one employee. Those who get SR1,500 count for half an employee, while those getting less than SR1,500 will not be counted at all in the Nitaqat program.

These changes aim to encourage employment of more Saudis in highly paid jobs that offer better incentives. They also aim to reward firms that employ Saudis in good jobs by increasing nationalization rates, the report said.