Mudad to issue alerts, trigger inspections for illogical salaries and delayed payments.

Dubai: Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development has announced that assigning employees unreasonably high or low wages will now be flagged as a violation under the Kingdom’s Wage Protection Programme.

Updated guidelines empower the Mudad digital payroll platform to detect anomalies such as salaries far below or above prevailing levels, excessive deductions exceeding 50 per cent of pay, or basic wages not recorded in the system for over 90 days.

Other violations include failure to record or pay wages or maintaining no documented record of payment.

Inspection visits will be triggered if private-sector employers delay submitting wage protection files by more than 20 days. The Mudad system sends an initial reminder once wages are due, a second notice after 10 days, and a final warning on day 15.

If files are still not submitted by day 20, inspections are initiated. Employers have 10 days to justify delays, after which employees have three days to accept or reject the explanation; if they do not respond, the employer’s justification is automatically recorded.

Under existing rules, companies delaying salaries for two consecutive months face suspension of ministry services, except for work permits. Delays exceeding three months result in full suspension, allowing employees to transfer to new employers without consent, even if their work permits remain valid.

The updated framework aims to ensure timely and fair compensation for workers while strengthening compliance among private-sector employers.(GulfNews)