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Labor reforms a shot in the arm for unemployed female pharmacists

By By SARAH ABDULLAH JEDDAH: Many unemployed female pharmacists and opticians see the recent move by the Ministry of Labor to enforce a law allowing only Saudi women to work in retail stores selling ladies fashion and related products as a golden opportunity for a similar regulation to be implemented for women health professionals as well.

"I graduated six years ago and have not been able to find a suitable job in my profession due to impossible gender restrictions," Maha Al-Harbi, a 28-year old Saudi pharmacology graduate, told Arab News.

She said she has applied to many public pharmacies as well as those in hospitals and polyclinics to no avail.

"I would like to call on the Ministry of Health and Ministry of Labor to work together to lift the ban on allowing women pharmacists and opticians to work in public as there are hundreds of Saudi women who are unemployed simply because of their gender," Al-Harbi added.

The Ministry of Health since November 2004 has reportedly stated it has been considering allowing Saudi women pharmacists to either run private women-only stores or work in public pharmacies. However, no decision so far has been made.

Arab News made several attempts to contact the Ministry of Health for comment on the delayed decision but received no response.

Dr. Aisha Natto, owner of the optical company Eye-to-Eye and board member of the Jeddah Chamber of Commerce and Industry, told Arab News that to her knowledge Saudi women are still banned from working as opticians and other health-related professions without clear reason.

"We need women to work in pharmacies as they should have the same rights as men. The women who studied pharmacology graduated from the same program as their male counterparts. They did not receive any discount, therefore they should have the right to work in their chosen profession as men do," Natto said.

She said currently there are thousands of women who are non-Saudi working in the Kingdom's pharmacies and called on governmental authorities to lift the ban on Saudi women and allow them to fill these positions in line with the recent reforms giving women the right to work in retail shops.

"The key is that Saudi citizens should be aware that it is up to all Saudi businessmen and businesswomen to make it their goal to support Saudi women, not merely hiring foreign labor. They must realize that these ladies are from this land, our homeland, and deserve a right to work for a good wage," Natto explained.

She added low wages and lack of a women's only transportation system are also obstacles for Saudi working women.

"It is not acceptable for any company to hire a Saudi for less than SR3,000 per month according to the royal decree by Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah. Still you find companies offering SR1,500 or less. With no transportation system, taking a taxi on a round trip daily for SR40 would work out to approximately SR1,200, nearly 50 percent of the SR3,000 minimum wage," she said.

Natto suggested either the development of a women's only transport system or a minimum wage of SR4,000 per month plus insurance and benefits as solutions, adding that the only way Saudi women could succeed is through governmental and citizen support.

© Arab News 2012