No educational qualifications required for minimum wage in Oman

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Muscat: The Ministry of Labour has announced that academic qualifications will not be a deciding factor for deciding minimum wages for Omani nationals.

According to a circular issued by Shaikh Nasr al Hosni, Under-Secretary of the Ministry of Labour, “the step comes within the Fiscal Balance Program 2020-2024 plan (Tawazon), which includes two initiatives to review the Omanisation rate policies and abolish the minimum wage”.

The minimum wage for Omanis working in the private sector is RO 325, of which RO 225 is basic salary and RO 100 allowance.

“The general minimum wage is mandatory regardless of the academic qualification of the job seeker”, the circular said.

Oman’s labour law mandates that the employer deposits the wages into the employee’s designated bank account within seven days from the end of the period in which such wages become due.

While welcoming the new initiative, Rashid al Balushi, human resource manager at a non-banking finance company, said that the new move will remove the discrimination of employees in the lower bracket of wages.

“While the minimum wages are mandated to be paid regardless of the qualification, skilled employees can still have contracts for higher wages,” he said.

Since February 2018, it has been mandatory for all private sector employers to register on the wage protection system of the Ministry of Labour and provide details of their workforce.

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