Economics

Saudi Businesses Are Struggling to Hire Saudi Workers

  • Seventy percent of sales jobs in 12 areas set aside for Saudis
  • Some businesses struggling to adjust as slower economy drags
Photographer: Simon Dawson/Bloomberg
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Mohanad Faham is wondering whether the furniture showroom he manages in Riyadh can survive a drive to get more Saudis into work.

The business is already battling an economic downturn; its storefront is plastered with red signs advertising discounts of nearly 60 percent. Meeting a government directive to replace most of the foreign staff who dominate the retail sector with higher-paid Saudi nationals could push it over the edge.