Engineers working in Saudi Arabia’s government sector are set to benefit from a new salary scale, recently announced by the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development (MHRSD). Approved by the Council of Ministers, the new scale will come into effect on December 31, 2024.

What is the new salary scale for engineers? 

The new salary scale including transport allowances, is provided in Chapter 5 of the document, under the section 'Allowances, Benefits, and Rewards', particularly in Article 10 and Article 11 of the section. Wherein, Article 10 says, "An annual allowance shall be granted to those covered by the regulation according to the salary scale and the approved ranks for employees covered by the Civil Service System.", and Article 11 provides the breakdown as under:

Check out the detailed provisions of the new salary scale as approved by the Cabinet.

What is the eligibility criteria for this new salary scale?

The Ministry has also highlighted the job levels as classified under the Saudi Unified Classification of Occupations, as well as, the eligibility under the new salary scale. According to the eligibility criteria, engineers who hold a bachelor's degree in any one of the engineering specialisations as part of the Saudi Universities curriculum or equivalent recognised educational institutions will qualify for the new salary scale. The job roles to be included are: Engineer, Associate Engineer, Professional Engineer, and Consultant Engineer.  

What is the purpose of this new salary scale for Engineers?  

Currently, engineering jobs are part of the general employee salary scale and do not have a career progression roadmap. Therefore, as part of the new salary scale which is not disclosed publicly, the eligible engineers will gain better career development opportunities, including:  

• Establishing engineering as a professional cadre, in alignment with the Engineers Professions Practice Law  
• Accreditation from the Saudi Council of Engineers and the Saudi Standard Classification of Occupations.  
• An independent salary scale for all engineering levels  
• Promotions even if job vacancies don’t exist  

Announcing the new salary scale, the Ministry said, “The new salary scale is expected to create an attractive and motivating work environment for engineering talent in the government sector, and will raise the bar for professional practice levels for engineers.”

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The Ministry is actively enhancing the engineering sector in Saudi Arabia. Recently, it announced that 25 per cent of engineering jobs will be reserved for Saudi nationals, in an attempt to boost local talent participation in the private sector and advance Saudization goals.