Manpower Planning

BAHR 4110
Chapter 1-Manpower Planning Basics
1
Introduction...........................................................................................................................4
Definition..............................................................................................................................4
Characteristics of Manpower planning.................................................................................4
Objectives of Manpower planning........................................................................................6
Reasons for increased iportance of Manpower !lanning...................................................6
1" #plo$ent situation...............................................................................................6
%" &echnological changes..............................................................................................6
'" Organisational Change..............................................................................................(
4" Deographic Changes..............................................................................................(
)" *ead &ie.................................................................................................................(
6" Increased Mobilit$....................................................................................................(
(" +hortage of s,ills......................................................................................................(
-" *egal controls...........................................................................................................(
%
Introduction...................................................................................................................................................4
Definition.......................................................................................................................................................4
Characteristics of Manpower planning..........................................................................................................4
Objectives of Manpower planning................................................................................................................6
Reasons for increased iportance of Manpower !lanning...........................................................................6
1" #plo$ent situation.....................................................................................................................6
%" &echnological changes....................................................................................................................6
'" Organisational Change....................................................................................................................(
4" Deographic Changes....................................................................................................................(
)" *ead &ie.......................................................................................................................................(
6" Increased Mobilit$..........................................................................................................................(
(" +hortage of s,ills............................................................................................................................(
-" *egal controls.................................................................................................................................(
!rocess of Manpower !lanning......................................................................................................................
/nal$sing Organisation !lans.............................................................................................................
0orecasting Deand for 1uan Resources.....................................................................................12
a" Managerial 3udgeent..............................................................................................................12
b" 4or,5+tud$ Method..................................................................................................................12
c" Ratio5&rend /nal$sis.................................................................................................................11
d" Matheatical Models................................................................................................................11
e" 4or,load /nal$sis....................................................................................................................1%
f" 4or,force /nal$sis.......................................................................................................................1'
g" +,ills /nal$sis...........................................................................................................................1'
0orecasting +uppl$ of 1uan Resources........................................................................................14
#stiating Manpower 6aps.............................................................................................................1)
/ction !lanning................................................................................................................................1)
Monitoring and Control....................................................................................................................1)
Chapter '5 Different *evels of Manpower !lanning...................................................................................1(
*evels of Manpower !lanning....................................................................................................................1-
1. 7ational *evel..................................................................................................................................1-
%. +ectoral *evel...................................................................................................................................1-
'. Industr$ *evel...................................................................................................................................1-
4. 8nit *evel.........................................................................................................................................1-
*iitations of Manpower !lanning.............................................................................................................1.
1. Inaccurac$........................................................................................................................................1.
%. #plo$ee Resistance........................................................................................................................1.
'. 8ncertainties.....................................................................................................................................1.
4. Inefficient Inforation +$ste.........................................................................................................1.
). *ac, of &op Manageent +upport...................................................................................................1.
6. &ie and #9pense............................................................................................................................%2
(. 8nbalanced 0ocus............................................................................................................................%2
6uidelines for #ffective Manpower !lanning.............................................................................................%2
1. &ailor5ade.......................................................................................................................................%2
%. /ppropriate &ie 1ori:on...............................................................................................................%2
'. /de;uate Organisation.....................................................................................................................%2
4. &op Manageent +upport................................................................................................................%2
). !articipation......................................................................................................................................%1
6. Inforation +$ste..........................................................................................................................%1
(. <alanced 0ocus.................................................................................................................................%1
3ob /nal$sis5Introduction............................................................................................................................%'
I. Introduction.........................................................................................................................................'4
1. Deographic Developents +ince 1.(2.........................................................................................'4
'
a. !opulation 6rowth........................................................................................................................'4
Census results.....................................................................................................................................')
b. Deographic Characteristics=...................................................................................................')
c. Regional Distribution....................................................................................................................'6
%. *abor 0orce Developents..............................................................................................................'(
a. !articipation in #conoic /ctivit$...............................................................................................'(
b. Developent of *abor 0orce +i:e and Its Distribution in the Categor$ of 7ationals and
Categor$ of #9patriates.......................................................................................................................'.
c. Developents in the +i:e of the Oani *abor 0orce...................................................................'.
d. Characteristics of the Oani *abor 0orce................................................................................42
e. 4ages> +alaries and Incoes........................................................................................................44
f. 8neplo$ed Oanis and the Main Characteristics of 3ob +ee,ers.............................................46
'. *abor *egislation.............................................................................................................................4.
a. *egal 0raewor, 6overning #plo$ent in the 6overnent +ector........................................4.
b. *egal 0raewor, 6overning #plo$ent in the !rivate +ector.............................................4.
4. #9patriate labor and Oani:ation issues.........................................................................................)%
a. +i:e and characteristics of e9patriate labor...................................................................................)%
b. &he econoic viabilit$ of e9patriate labor...............................................................................)'
c. &he Oani:ation !olic$ and Its Dilea....................................................................................)4
). !olicies and 0uture ?ision of #plo$ent......................................................................................)6
II. Conclusion...........................................................................................................................................)-
4
Introduction
Manpower !lanning is the process b$ which anageent deterines how an
organisation should ove fro its current anpower position to its desired
anpower position. &hrough it anageent tries to have the right nuber and the
right ,ind of people at the right place> at the right tie> doing things which result in
both> organisation and the individual receiving a9iu long range benefit.
Definition
+teiner defines anpower planning as the strategy for the acquisition, utilisation,
improvement and preservation of an organisations human resources. It is aimed at
coordinating the requirements for and the availability of different types of
employees. In short it can be said that anpower planning is the process of
deterining anpower needs and forulating plans to eet these needs.
Characteristics of Manpower planning
@a" Manpower planning li,e all planning is forward loo,ing or future oriented. It
involves forecasts of the anpower needs in a future tie period so that
ade;uate and tiel$ provision a$ be ade to eet the needs.
@b" Manpower planning is an on5going or continuous process because the
deand for and the suppl$ of huan resources undergo fre;uent changes. It
is not static but subject to review and revision in accordance with the needs
of the organisation and the changing environent.
@c" Manpower planning is an integral part of corporate planning. 4ithout a
corporate plan> there can be no anpower plan. 4hether the anpower plans
eets the organisation re;uireents depends on how clearl$ the goals are
defined.
@d" &he basic purpose of anpower planning is to a,e optiu utilisation of
organisations current and future huan resources. In order to a9iise the
return on investent in huan resources> it is necessar$ to relate huan
resources to future needs of the organisation.
@e" Manpower planning has both ;uantitative and ;ualitative aspects. &he forer
iplies the right nuber of eplo$ees while the later eans the right talent
re;uired in the organisation.
@f" Manpower planning is the priar$ responsibilit$ of anageent so as to
ensure effective utilisation of the organisations huan resources.
)
@g" Manpower plans can be short ter or long ter. *ong range plans are ade
for a period of five $ears or ore on the basis of trends in the econo$>
labour ar,et and production.
&hese reflect anageent thin,ing on the organisational structure> business
environent and huan resource policies. +hort ter anpower plans are
cover periods ranging fro one $ear to less than five $ears. &he basic
concern of short ter plans is to fill e9isting jobs. *ong ter and short ter
plans support each other.
@h" Manpower planning is a two phased process involving calculation about the
deand for and suppl$ of huan resources so as to get a balance between the
two. / anpower plans consists of two sub plans=
i. / anpower deand plan> and
ii. / anpower suppl$ plan.
@i" Manpower planning is based on the recognition that anpower is an asset
which grows or appreciates over tie.
@j" Manpower planning involves stud$ of the anpower environent which
influences the deand for anpower and its suppl$. It also involves stud$ of
anpower utilisation.
Objectives of Manpower planning
&he ain objectives of anpower planning are as follows=
@a" &o ensure optiu use of e9isting huan resources
@b" &o forecast future re;uireents for huan resources
@c" &o provide control easures to ensure that necessar$ huan resources are
available as and when re;uired
@d" &o lin, huan resource planning with organisational planning
@e" &o assess surplus and shortage of anpower
@f" &o anticipate the ipact of technolog$ on jobs and huan resources
@g" &o deterine the level of recruitent and training
@h" &o estiate the cost of huan resources
@i" &o provide basic anageent developent plans
@j" &o eet the needs of e9pansion> diversification plans
6
Reasons for increased importance of Manpower Planning
In recent $ears the focus on anpower planning has increased due to several reasons=
a. Emploment situation
On the one hand the nuber of educated uneplo$ed is increasingA on the other
hand> there is shortage of anpower in an$ sectors. &his situation re;uires ore
effective training of people. 8nderdeveloped countries find that shortage of talented
and s,illed anpower is a ajor obstacle to their industrial progress and the$ have
to iport certain s,ills. &his situation has put ore iportance on proper anpower
planning.
b. !echnological changes
&he widespread and rapid changes in production technolog$ have affected the
content and conte9t of jobs. &hese changes create probles concerning
redundancies> retraining and redeplo$ent of personnel. +$steatic anpower
planning can help to solve these probles.
c. Organisational Change
Due to cople9ities of business> the si:e of firs is changing. / lot of erger and
ac;uisition activit$ is going all over the world. &he environent of business has
becoe ore turbulent as copared to past. &hese rapid changes in environent
re;uire changes in organisational structure. 7ew anpower strategies are re;uired
to eet these challenges.
d. Demographic Changes
&he deographic profile of wor,force is changing. More woen are joining
organisations. &he educational levels are also increasing. &hese changes in the
profile of wor,force re;uire changes in anpower policies thus a,ing anpower
planning ore iportant.
e. "ead !ime
*ead tie is re;uired for selection and training of eplo$ees to handle new jobs
and technolog$ successfull$. &his re;uires long anpower planning.
f. Increased Mobilit
4ith increasing obilit$> eplo$ers find it difficult to retain talented personnel.
#ffective anpower planning helps to reduce eplo$ee turnover.
(
g. #hortage of s$ills
Organisations have becoe ore cople9 and re;uire various t$pes of specialised
s,ills. &hese s,ills are scarce and probles arise when eplo$ees with these s,ills
leave an organisation> thus a,ing anpower planning ore iportant.
h. "egal controls
*aws regarding wor,ing conditions> wor,ing hours> woen and child labour> casual
and contract labour etc does not allow organisations to hire and fire at will.
&herefore organisations ust loo, ahead and foresee anpower probles with the
help of s$steatic anpower planning.
-
Chapter 2 Process of Manpower Planning
!rocess of Manpower !lanning.............................................................................................-
1. /nal$sing Organisation !lans.....................................................................................-
%. 0orecasting deand for huan resources....................................................................
a" Managerial 3udgeent..............................................................................................
b" 4or,5+tud$ ethod..................................................................................................
c" Ratio5&rend anal$sis..............................................................................................12
d" Matheatical odels.............................................................................................12
e" 4or,load anal$sis..................................................................................................11
f" 4or,force anal$sis................................................................................................1%
g" +,ills anal$sis........................................................................................................1%
'. 0orecasting suppl$ of huan resources....................................................................1'
4. #stiating anpower gaps.......................................................................................14
). /ction !lanning........................................................................................................14
6. Monitoring and Control............................................................................................14
.
Process of Manpower Planning
&he ajor stages involved in anpower planning are as follows=
1. /nal$sing organisational plans
%. 0orecasting deand for huan resources @Manpower 0orecasting"
'. 0orecasting suppl$ of huan resources
4. #stiating anpower gaps
). /ction !lanning
6. Monitoring and Control
%nalsing Organisation Plans
In the first stage the objectives and strategic plans of the organisation are anal$sed.
!lans regarding technolog$> production> ar,eting> finance> e9pansion and
diversification give an idea about the volue of future wor, activit$. #ach plan can
be further anal$sed into sub plans and detailed plans can be prepared. &he future
organisation structure and job design (The process of organizing or! into the tas!s
required to perform a specific "ob# should be ade clear and changes in the
organisation structure should be e9ained so as to anticipate its anpower
re;uireents.
12
Analysing
organisational plans
orecasting !e"an! orecasting supply
#ap Analysis
Action Plan$
Monitoring %
Control
It is necessar$ to stud$ business plans because all anpower plans are derived fro
business plans. /n organisationBs plans are based on econoic forecast> copan$Bs
sales and e9pansion forecast> and the labour ar,et forecast.
&orecasting Demand for 'uman Resources
On the basis of corporate and functional plans> the future needs of huan resources
in the organisation are anticipated. &he nuber of people and the s,ills re;uired for
future depend on the production and sales budgets in a anufacturing enterprise.
<ut the huan resource re;uireents for a given level of operations var$ depending
upon the production technolog$> process> a,e or bu$ decisions> etc. It is necessar$
to a,e projections for new positions to be created and the vacancies li,el$ to arise
in current anpower. &echni;ues used in anpower forecasting are as follows=
a& Managerial 'u!ge"ent
In this ethod> e9perienced anagers estiate the anpower re;uireents for
their respective departents on the basis of their ,nowledge of e9pected future
wor,load and eplo$ee efficienc$. &hese departental estiates are than
aggregated to get the overall estiate for the organisation. &his is the siplest
and tie saving ethod. 1owever> this ethod is ;uite subjective and hence>
suitable for onl$ sall organisations.
(& )or*-+tu!y Metho!
)or* +tu!y is the s$steatic e9aination of the ethods of carr$ing out
activities such as to iprove the effective use of resources and to set up
standards of perforance for the activities carried out.
)or* +tu!y
Coponents of )or* +tu!y
11
8nder this ethod> tie and otion studies are used to anal$se and easure the
wor, being done. 4ith the help of such studies> standard tie re;uired per unit
of wor, is decided.
,-a"ple.
!lanned output for ne9t $ear C )2>222 units
+tandard hours per unit C '
!lanned hours re;uired C 1> )2>222
!roductive hours per wor,er per $ear C '222
7uber of wor,ers re;uired C 1> )2>222 D '222 C )2
&hus )2 wor,ers are re;uired
+uppose the span of control is 12> than )2D12 C ) supervisors will be re;uired.
c& Ratio-/ren! Analysis
8nder this ethod> ratios are calculated on the basis of past data.
,-a"ple.
!roduction level C )2222 units
7o of wor,ers in %226 C )2
Ratio C )2=)2222 C 1=1222
#stiated !roduction level in %22( C 62222
7o of wor,ers re;uired C 62222 9 1D1222 C 62
!& Mathe"atical Mo!els
,"ploy"ent /ren!s
&rends in the organisations anpower can be judged b$ coparing and
anal$sing the staff during the past five or si9 $ears
Replace"ent 0ee!s
Replaceent needs depend on deaths> retireent> resignation and
terination of eplo$ees. &hese can also be assessed on the basis of past
e9perience.
1%
Pro!ucti1ity
Iproveent in productivit$ influences anpower re;uireents. <etter
utilisation of e9isting anpower results in productivit$. &his results in
fewer re;uireents for anpower.
A(senteeis"
4hile estiating deand for future anpower needs> the e9isting rate of
absenteeis in the organisation should be considered. &he rate of
absenteeis can be calculated as follows=
/bsenteeis C Manda$s lost due to absenteeis
Manda$s wor,ed EMan5da$s lost
,-a"ple.
Manda$s lost due to absenteeis C %
Manda$s wor,ed C %-
/bsenteeis C % D %- E%
C % D '2 C 1D1) C 2.266
(ote= Manda$ 5 One da$Fs wor,= the wor, done b$ one person in one da$
,-pansion an! #rowth
&he organisations growth plans and e9pansion prograe should be
carefull$ anal$sed to judge their ipact on anpower re;uireents in
future. +teps ust be ta,en to getting and developing the talent
re;uired to ipleent e9pansion and growth plans without dela$.
e& )or*loa! Analysis
8nder this ethod> the total wor,load of each departent is estiated on the
basis of sales forecasts> wor, schedules> growth rates> e9pansion plans> etc. On
the basis of past e9perience and wor, easureent> the total wor,load is
converted into anpower re;uired.
,-a"ple.
+uppose a factor$ ais to produce )2222 tonnes of ceent during %22(. &he
standard an5hours re;uired to produce one ton is estiated to be 12. On the
basis of past e9perience> the factor$ estiates that on an average one wor,er can
contribute %)22 hours per $ear.
1'
&he total wor,load and the nuber of wor,ers re;uired can be estiated as
follows=
!roduction budget for %22(= )2222 tonnes
+tandard an5hours re;uired per unit= 12
!lanned an5hours re;uired for %22(= )22222
Man5hours available per wor,er= %)22
7uber of wor,ers re;uired for %22(C )22222 D %)22 C %22
f& )or*force Analysis
/ll the e9isting wor,ers are not li,el$ to be available for wor, throughout the
$ear> due to absenteeis and turnover. &herefore> it is necessar$ to a,e
arrangeents for loss of current anpower due to these factors.
,-a"ple.
On the basis of past e9perience> the organisation estiates that on average> ) G
of the staff will reain absent and another )G is li,el$ to be lost due to
resignations> retireents> deaths> terinations> etc.
&hus> the actual nuber of wor,ers re;uired @using the e9aple of wor,load
anal$sis" will be
%22 E 12G of %22
C %22 E 12D122 H %22
C %22 E %2
C %%2
g& +*ills Analysis
&he ;ualit$ of anpower re;uired varies fro job to job. &herefore> the ;ualit$
of eplo$ees re;uired for a job can be deterined onl$ after deterining the job
re;uireents.
&o ,now the re;uireents of a particular job> job anal$sis is done. 3ob anal$sis is
the process of anal$sing a job so as to collect all relevant facts about the job in
ters of duties and responsibilities involved in it and the ;ualifications needed
for successful perforance of the job.
4ith help of inforation obtained through job anal$sis> two stateents> nael$
job description and job specification are prepared. 3ob description contains
details about the contents of a job whereas job specification reveals the ph$sical>
educational and other ;ualifications and e9perience re;uired in an individual to
perfor the job satisfactoril$.
14
&orecasting #uppl of 'uman Resources
#ver$ organisation has two sources of suppl$ of huan resources I internal and
e9ternal. Internall$> huan resources can be obtained for certain posts through
prootions and transfers. 1uan resources flow in and out of an organisation due
to several reasons as follows=
Inflos= 7ew recruits> !rootions> &ransfers.
$utflos= !rootions> &ransfers> Retireents> &erination> Resignations> Deaths.
!olicies relating to these should be constantl$ onitored to regularl$ judge the
ipact on the internal suppl$ of huan resources. In order to judge the inside
suppl$ of huan resources in future> huan resources inventor$ or huan resource
audit is necessar$. &his contains data about the present huan resources. &he ajor
coponents of 1uan Resource Inventor$ are=
5 %ead &ount=
&otal nuber of people eplo$ed> departent wise> s,ill wise>
designations wise> pa$roll wise> gender wise> etc.
5 'ob (amily Inventory=
7uber of eplo$ees in each job> e.g.> cler,s> t$pists> cashiers>
drivers> anagers> etc.
5 )ge Inventory=
It is age wise classification of eplo$ees.
5 *!ill Inventory=
It contains data about the education> s,ills> e9perience> past
perforance> wor, preference and potential for prootion> etc.
Manpower inventor$ helps in deterining and evaluating the ;uantit$ and ;ualit$
of the internal huan resources. It reveals what e9ists in stoc, of anpower and
what can be e9pected in future. It also indicates the possible shortfalls in
coparison with e9pansion re;uireents and the future organisational structure.
Detailed bio data of each eplo$ee provides the foundation for a prograe of
individual developent.
Once the present huan resources are assessed> the changes @e9pected gain or loss
of anpower" li,el$ to occur can be estiated. !otential losses of huan resources
can arise in the for of resignations> disissals> deaths> la$off> terinations>
prootions> deotions> transfers> deputations out> consultanc$ out> etc. +iilarl$
additions to huan resources a$ ta,e place due to new recruits> prootions>
deotions> transfers> deputations in> consultanc$ in> ac;uisition of new s,ills
through training> etc.
1)
&he effect of potential loss or gain can be calculated as follows=
0uture internal suppl$ of hr 2 present inventor$ of hr 3 potential additions
!otential losses.
Estimating Manpower )aps
7et huan resource re;uireents or anpower gaps can be identified b$
coparing deand forecasts and suppl$ forecasts. +uch coparisons reveal either
deficit or surplus of huan resources in future. Deficits tells about the nuber of
persons to be recruited fro outside whereas surplus tells about the e9tra eplo$ees
to be redeplo$ed or terinated.
+iilarl$> gaps can be in ters of ,nowledge> s,ills and aptitude. #plo$ees
estiated to be deficient can be trained whereas eplo$ees with higher s,ills can be
given ore enriched jobs to atch with their s,ills.
%ction Planning
Once the gaps have been identified> plans are prepared to bridge the gaps. &o
overcoe surplus> eplo$ees a$ be redeplo$ed to other departents or a$ be
terinated in consultation with trade unions. !eople a$ be persuaded to ;uit
voluntaril$ through golden handsha,e. On the other hand> deficit can be et
through selection> transfers> prootions> and training plans.
In case the future suppl$ of huan resources fro all e9ternal sources in estiated
to fall short of re;uireents> the huan resource planners should recoend
odification of organisational plans.
Monitoring and Control
Once the action plans are ipleented> the huan resource structure and s$ste
needs to be reviewed and regulated. Monitoring and control phase involves
allocation and utilisation of huan resources over tie. Review of anpower plans
and prograes helps to reveal deficiencies. Corrective actions should be ta,en at
the right tie to reove an$ deficiencies. Manpower inventor$ should be updated
regularl$. 7ecessar$ odifications in anpower plans should be ade in the light
of changing environent and needs of the organisation. /n appraisal of the e9isting
anpower plans serves as a guide in future anpower planning. +oe of the steps
that a$ be ta,en to onitor and control huan resource plans a$ be as follows=
/n$ addition to the anpower ust considered at the top level of anageent
16
/ properl$ designated s$ste of reporting changes in the anpower should be
eplo$ed
1uan resource budgets based on anpower plans a$ be used to ,eep
anpower within properl$ defined liits
Jeeping a close watch on overtie wor,ed and casual labour eplo$ed
/uditing the utilisation of anpower
Measuring the efficienc$ of anpower
0inding the level of orale and job satisfaction through surve$s and correcting
the deficienc$
/rranging e9it interviews for better retaining of anpower
0inding out brea, even point or pa$ bac, period of new eplo$ees
1(
Chapter 4- 5ifferent 6e1els of Manpower Planning
*evels of Manpower !lanning.........................................................................................1(
1. 7ational *evel.......................................................................................................1(
%. +ectoral *evel........................................................................................................1(
'. Industr$ *evel........................................................................................................1(
4. 8nit *evel..............................................................................................................1(
*iitations of Manpower !lanning.................................................................................1-
1. Inaccurac$.............................................................................................................1-
%. #plo$ee Resistance.............................................................................................1-
'. 8ncertainties..........................................................................................................1-
4. Inefficient Inforation +$ste..............................................................................1-
). *ac, of &op Manageent +upport........................................................................1-
6. &ie and #9pense.................................................................................................1.
(. 8nbalanced 0ocus.................................................................................................1.
6uidelines for #ffective Manpower !lanning.................................................................1.
1. &ailor5ade............................................................................................................1.
%. /ppropriate &ie 1ori:on....................................................................................1.
'. /de;uate Organisation..........................................................................................1.
4. &op Manageent +upport.....................................................................................1.
). !articipation...........................................................................................................%2
6. Inforation +$ste...............................................................................................%2
(. <alanced 0ocus......................................................................................................%2
1-
"evels of Manpower Planning
Manpower planning can be done at various levels such as=
*. (ational "evel
&he central governent plans huan resources at the national level. It forecasts
deand for and suppl$ of huan resources for the countr$ as a whole. 7ational
level plan covers factors li,e population projections> econoic developent
prograe> educational facilities> occupational distribution of population> obilit$
of people> etc. &he governent uses population polic$> education polic$> etc to
create a atch between the deand and suppl$ of huan resources.
&he governent of Oan has specified the objectives of huan resource planning
in successive five $ear plans. &he ajor focus has been on education and training
facilities> eplo$ent generation> health> etc. &his has resulted in better and
ore opportunities for the Oani nationals.
+. #ectoral "evel
Central or +tate governents forulate huan resource plans for particular sectors>
e.g.> agriculture sector> industrial sector> etc. !rojections are based on governent
polic$> rate of growth of econo$ and population.
,. Industr "evel
Manpower plans for specific industries li,e te9tiles> ceent> iron> touris> hotels>
etc. are prepared on the basis of projected operations of a particular industr$.
-. .nit "evel
Manpower re;uireents of a particular enterprise are forecast at this level. &hese
a$ be estiated departent wise> job categor$ wise> etc. &he process of huan
resource planning should begin at the plant D branch level so as to reap the benefits
of thin,ing of operating personnel who are in direct touch with da$ to da$
probles.
!lant level anpower plans can be prepared b$ the operating coittee. +uch plans
are subitted to departent D divisional heads. /t departent D divisional level> the
divisional coittee will review and integrate plant level plans. &he departental D
divisional plans are reviewed and integrated with anpower plans for head office
staff. +pecial ephasis is placed at this level on anageent developent plans.
0inall$ the copan$Bs anpower plan is integrated with the organisational plans.
1.
"imitations of Manpower Planning
&he ain liitations D probles associated with the process of anpower planning can be
described as follows=
*. Inaccurac
Manpower planning involves forecasting the deand for huan resources and
suppl$ of huan resources. &herefore> it can not be cent per cent accurate process.
*onger the tie hori:on> greater is the possibilit$ of inaccurac$. Inaccurac$
increases when departental forecasts are erel$ aggregated without critical
review.
+. Emploee Resistance
#plo$ees and trade unions feel that huan resource planning increases their
wor,load and regulates the through productivit$ bargaining. Due to this feeling>
the$ soetie resist the process of anpower planning.
,. .ncertainties
*abour absenteeis> labour turnover> seasonal eplo$ent> technological changes
and ar,et fluctuations are the uncertainties which serve as constraints to
anpower planning. It is ris,$ to depend upon general estiates of anpower in
the face of rapid changes in environent.
-. Inefficient Information #stem
In ost of the organisaitons> huan resource inforation s$ste is not full$
developed. In the absence of reliable data> it is not possible to develop effective
huan resource plans.
/. "ac$ of !op Management #upport
In the absence of support and coitent fro the top> huan resource e9perts
find it difficult to obtain vital inputs. +oeties> the process is started with a lot of
enthusias but is not continued due to lac, of patience. +uccessful anpower
planning flourishes slowl$ and graduall$. In soe cases> costl$ technologies are
introduced just because copetitors have adopted the. &hese a$ not give results
unless atched with needs and environent of the organisation.
%2
0. !ime and E1pense
Manpower planning is a tie consuing and e9pensive e9ercise. / good deal of
tie and cost are involved in data collection and forecasting.
2. .nbalanced &ocus
In soe copanies> anpower planning is used as a nubers gae. &here is too
uch focus on the ;uantitative aspect to ensure the flow of people in and out of the
organisation. +uch an e9clusive focus overta,es the ore iportant diension> i.e.>
the ;ualit$ of huan resources. Career planning and developent> s,ill
enhanceent> orale> coitent> etc.> are li,el$ to suffer due to such unbalanced
approach to anpower planning.
)uidelines for Effective Manpower Planning
+oe of the steps that a$ be ta,en to a,e anpower planning ore effective can be
described as follows=
*. !ailor3made
Manpower plans should be balanced with the corporate plans of the enterprise. &he
ethods and techni;ues used should fit the objectives> strategies and environent
of the particular organisation.
+. %ppropriate !ime 'ori4on
&he period of a anpower plan should be appropriate to the needs and re;uireents
of the specific organisation. &he si:e and structure of the enterprise as well as the
changing aspirations of the people should be ta,en into consideration.
,. %de5uate Organisation
Manpower planning function should be properl$ organised. / separate cell> section>
or coittee a$ be constituted within the huan resource departent to provide
ade;uate focus. &his would help in better coordination of planning efforts at various
levels in the organisation> thus increasing the effectiveness of anpower plans.
-. !op Management #upport
<efore starting the anpower planning process> the support of the top anageent
should be ensured. /lso the e9ercise of anpower planning should be carried out
within the liits of a budget. &here is no use forulating plans which cannot be
ipleented due to financial constraints.
%1
/. Participation
0or anpower planning to be successful> active participation and coordinated
efforts on the part of operating e9ecutives is re;uired. !roper participation helps in
iproving the understanding of the process of anpower planning and thus reduces
the resistance to the process of anpower planning.
0. Information #stem
/n ade;uate database should be developed for e9isting huan resources in the
organisation to facilitate anpower planning for future.
2. 6alanced &ocus
&he ;uantit$ and ;ualit$ of huan resources should be stressed in a balanced
anner. &he ephasis should be on filling future vacancies with right people rather
than just atching e9isting people with e9isting jobs. 8pward obilit$ of e9isting
staff needs to be considered carefull$. *abour turnover should be considered
according to length of service rather than erel$ on aggregate basis.
%%
Chapter 4 - 'o( Analysis$ 'o( ,1aluation an! 'o( 5esign
3ob /nal$sis5IntroductionKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKK.%%
3ob /nal$sis CoponentsKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKK%%
a" 3ob DescriptionKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKK..%%
b" 3ob +pecificationKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKK%4
Iportance of 3ob /nal$sisKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKK...%6
3ob #valuationKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKK%-
3ob DesignKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKK.%-
/pproaches to job designKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKK%-
Methods of 3ob DesignKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKK.'2
a"3ob #nlargeentKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKK'1
b" 3ob e9tensionKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKK'1

c" 3ob rotationKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKK.'1
d" 3ob #nrichentKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKKK.'1
7ob %nalsis3Introduction
%'
3ob anal$sis is the process of deterining and recording all the pertinent inforation
about a specific job> including the tas,s involved> the ,nowledge and s,ill set re;uired to
perfor the job> the responsibilities attached to the job and the abilities re;uired to
perfor the job successfull$. 3ob anal$sis differentiates one job fro another in an
organisation. It involves copiling a detailed description of tas,s> deterining the
relationship of the job to other jobs and e9aining the ,nowledge> ;ualifications or
eplo$ent standards> accountabilities and other incubent re;uireents. In short> job
anal$sis is the recording of all the activities involved in a job and the s,ill and ,nowledge
re;uireents of the perforer of the job.
3ob anal$sis provides the necessar$ inputs for a nuber of huan resource activities li,e
recruitent> selection> job design> estiating job worth> training and appraisal. &hese
activities depend on job anal$sis. 3ob anal$sis contributes either directl$ or indirectl$ to all
the fields of huan resource anageent.
7ob %nalsis Components
&he above inforation fors the contents of job description and job specification.
a& 'o( 5escription
/n essential part of job anal$sis is the creation of job descriptions. / job description
is a list of tas,s> duties and responsibilities @&DRs" that a job entails. &DRs are
observable actions. 4hen a anager attepts to evaluate job perforance> it is
ost iportant to have detailed inforation about the wor, perfored in the job
@that is the &DRs". &his inforation a,es it possible to deterine how well an
individual is eeting each job re;uireents.
+aple of a 3ob Description=
%4
Job Analysis
Job Description Job Specifications Job Evaluation
+ales /ssociate
Custoer service and interaction with custoers are ,e$ responsibilities of this
position. / sales associate ust wor, effectivel$ with custoers and other store
associates and provide inforation about products andDor projects. &his position
also involves stoc,ing erchandise @coodit$Dproduct"> using tools L e;uipent>
and aintenance duties @e.g. sweeping aisles @passage wa$s etc".
Major &as,s and responsibilities
M !resenting a consistent> pleasant L service oriented iage to custoers
M *istening and as,ing appropriate ;uestions to assist custoers in
copleting projects
M /ssisting L wor,ing with other store associates in order to coplete job
tas,s
M 8sing coputers> phones L other e;uipent
M Cleaning and aintaining shelves and aisles
&he above job description includes a job title> a brief description of the &DRs> and a
list of the essential duties with detailed specifications of the tas,s involved in
carr$ing out each dut$.
/ll job descriptions within the organi:ation should follow the sae forat. &his
helps the organi:ation a,e consistent decisions about such atters as pa$ and
prootions. It also helps the organi:ation show that it a,es huan resource
decisions fairl$.
4henever the organi:ation creates a new job> it needs to prepare a job description.
3ob descriptions should be reviewed periodicall$> sa$> once a $ear and updated> if
necessar$.
!erforance appraisals could provide a good opportunit$ for updating job
descriptions> as the eplo$ee and the supervisor copare what the eplo$ee has
been doing against the details of the job description.
Organi:ations should give each newl$ hired eplo$ee a cop$ of his or her job
description. &his helps the eplo$ee to understand what is e9pected but it should
not be presented as liiting the eplo$eeBs coitent to ;ualit$ and custoer
satisfaction. Ideall$> eplo$ees will want to go above and be$ond the listed duties
when the situation and their abilities call for that. Man$ job descriptions include the
phrase Nand other duties as re;uestedB as a wa$ to reind eplo$ees not to tell their
supervisor> Nbut> thatBs not part of $ jobB.
)riting 7o( !escription
%)
&he following guidelines help in writing a good job description=
M&he nature of the wor,> including all iportant relationships> should be indicated
M&he wor, and duties of the position should be clearl$ laid out.
M&o show the ,ind of wor,> the degree of cople9it$> the degree of s,ill re;uired>
the e9tent of the wor,ers responsibilit$ for each phase of wor,> and the degree and
t$pe of accountabilit$> ore specific words li,e anal$se> gather> plan> confir>
deliver> aintain> supervise and recoend should be selected and used.
M+upervisor$ responsibilit$ should be e9plained to the incubent. <rief and
accurate stateents should be used.
/ new eplo$ee should be able to understand the job and its basic re;uireents. /s
the operations in an organisation ,eep on changing in response to ar,et deand
and technological changes> jobs and their descriptions also change. /n old and
outdated job description becoes redundant and irrelevant in an organisational
conte9t. It would be of no use for the new job. 1ence> job descriptions have to be
updated as and when ajor changes ta,e place in responsibilities> relationships and
tas,s.
(& 'o( +pecification
4hereas the description focuses on the activities involved in carr$ing out a job> a
job specification loo,s at the ;ualities of the person perforing the job. It is a list of
the ,nowledge> s,ills> abilities and other characteristics @J+/O" that an individual
ust have to perfor the job. Jnowledge refers to factual or procedural
inforation that is necessar$ for successfull$ perforing a tas,. / s,ill is an
individualBs level of proficienc$ at perforing a particular tas, I that is I the
capabilit$ to perfor it well. 4ith ,nowledge and e9perience> $ou could ac;uire
s,ill in the tas, of preparing job specifications. /bilit$> in contrast to s,ill> refers to
a ore general enduring capabilit$ that an individual possesses. / person ight
have the abilit$ to cooperate with others or to write clearl$ and precisel$. 0inall$>
other characteristics ight be personalit$ traits such as soeoneBs persistence or
otivation to achieve. +oe jobs also have legal re;uireents such as licensing or
certification.
&he following the saple job specification for the above job description.
%6
+ales Associate
Major s,ills L Copetencies
MCustoer 0ocus= /bilit$ to aintain a positive custoer service orientation when
dealing with custoers on the phone and in person
M+tress &olerance= /bilit$ to wor, effectivel$ under stressful conditions @e.g.>
dealing with ultiple custoers who need help ;uic,l$"
M&eawor,= /bilit$ to wor, well with others to achieve coon goals
M *isteningDCounicating= /bilit$ to listen attentivel$ to others> as, appropriate
;uestions and spea, in a clear and understandable anner
Miniu job re;uireents
M1- $ears or older
M!ass a drug test
M<e able to wor, a fle9ible schedule including wee,ends> evenings L holida$s
M!ass a sales associate test
In developing job specifications> it is iportant to consider all of the eleents of
J+/Os. /s with writing job descriptions the inforation can coe fro a
cobination of people perforing the job> people supervising or planning for job
and trained job anal$sts.
In contrast to tas,s> duties and responsibilities> J+/O are characteristics of people
and are not directl$ observable. &he$ are observable onl$ when individuals are
carr$ing out the &DRs of the job. &hus> if soeone applied for a clerical job> $ou
could not sipl$ loo, at the individual to deterine whether he possessed t$ping
s,ills. 1owever> $ou could assess the level of t$ping s,ill b$ observing the person
t$pe a docuent and reviewing the docuent.
Operations that need to run %4 hours a da$ have special re;uireents. 6lobali:ation
often eans that operations ta,e place across an$ tie hori:ons> re;uiring
anageent at all hours. 4hen a job entails wor,ing night shifts> job specification
should reflect this re;uireent. 0or ost people> wor,ing at night disrupts their
noral functioning and a$ cause disorders such as fatigue> depression and obesit$.
/ job specification is a written stateent of the iniu acceptable ;ualifications>
,nowledge> s,ills> traits and ph$sical and ental characteristics that an incubent
ust posses to perfor the job successfull$. &hese specifications are captured under
the following headings=
Phsical #pecifications
&hese specifications var$ fro job to job and include ph$sical features li,e height>
weight> vision> hearing> abilit$ to lift and carr$ weights> health condition> age and
the capacit$ to use or operate achines> tools> e;uipents etc. !h$sicall$
deanding tas,s li,e operating heav$ achiner$ re;uire ore detailed and
stringent ph$sical specifications.
%(
Mental #pecifications
Mental specific actions include anal$tical abilit$> data interpretation abilit$>
decision5a,ing abilit$ etc. which are essential to perfor the job successfull$. &he
re;uired level of these abilities varies according to the level of the job and depends
on the responsibilities associated with the job.
Emotional and #ocial #pecification
#otional specification includes stabilit$> adaptabilit$ and fle9ibilit$. +ocial
specifications include abilit$ to wor, in a tea> lead a tea> aintain interpersonal
relationships etc. &hese specifications are ore broad based and are norall$
coon across ost of the jobs.
6ehavioural #pecification
<ehavioural specifications include the abilit$ to a,e judgents> abilit$ to
underta,e research> creativit$> teaching abilit$> aturit$ @whether the individual is
capable of accepting responsibilities"> self5reliance> and the abilit$ to be
authoritative> etc. &hese specifications pla$ a higher role in the selection of the
candidate for higher level jobs in the organisational hierarch$.
Importance of 7ob %nalsis
3ob anal$sis is so iportant to 1R anagers that it has been called the building
bloc, of ever$thing that personnel do.
1. )or* re!esign= Often an organi:ation see,s to redesign wor, to a,e it ore
efficient or to iprove ;ualit$. &he redesign re;uires detailed inforation about the
e9isting jobs. In addition> preparing the redesign is siilar to anal$sing a job that
does not $et e9ist.
%8 Hu"an resource planning= /s planners anal$se huan resource needs and how
to eet these needs> the$ ust have accurate inforation about the levels of s,ill
re;uired in various jobs> so that the$ can tell what ,ind of huan resources will be
needed.
'. +election. &o identif$ the ost ;ualified applicants for various positions>
decision a,ers need to ,now what tas,s the individuals ust perfors well as
necessar$ ,nowledge> s,ills and abilities.
4. /raining. /lost ever$ eplo$ee hired b$ an organi:ation will re;uire training.
/n$ training progra re;uires ,nowledge of the tas, perfored in a job> so that the
training is related the necessar$ ,nowledge and s,ills.
%-
). Perfor"ance Appraisal. /n accurate perforance appraisal re;uires
inforation about how well each eplo$ee is perforing in order to reward
eplo$ees who perfor well and to iprove their perforance if it is below the
standard. 3ob anal$sis helps in identif$ing the behaviours and the results associated
with effective perforance.
6. Career Planning. Matching an individualBs s,ills and aspirations with career
opportunities re;uires that those in charge of career planning ,now the s,ill
re;uireents of the various jobs. &his allows the to guide individuals into jobs in
which the$ will succeed and be satisfied.
(. Pro"otion an! /ransfer.Once the job responsibilities and re;uireents are
,nown> it is easier to a,e decisions regarding transfers and prootions based on
suitabilit$. &he best fit for a position can be identified b$ evaluating the candidates
for transfer D prootion against the results of job anal$sis.
-. Co"pensation Manage"ent. 3ob evaluation used with other techni;ues li,e
ar,et surve$s> provide the inputs for wage and salar$ adinistration in an
organisation. 3ob evaluation ta,es into consideration the content of the job in ters
of tas,s> duties> responsibilities> ris,s> ha:ards> etc> which has a bearing on the
copensation for perforing the job.
.. 9n!uction. 3ob description provides inforation regarding the job and helps a
new incubent understand his tas,s and responsibilities. &his helps hi adapt
;uic,l$ to the wor,place. +ince roles and responsibilities are clearl$ delineated> he
will also be able to develop and aintain ore haronious wor,ing relationships
with his colleagues.
12. +uccession Planning. +uccession planning involves identif$ing and grooing a
successor for a vacanc$ that would arise in the future. &he tas,s and responsibilities
of the job and the specifications of the job help in evaluating the available
candidates and selecting the ost suitable one.
7ob Evaluation
3ob anal$sis is an orderl$ and s$steatic techni;ue of deterining of the relative
worth of the various jobs within the organi:ation so as to develop an e;uitable wage
and salar$ structure. It begins with job anal$sis and ends up with the classification
of jobs according to their worth @having a specified value> deserving". &he purpose
of job evaluation is to deterine basic wage rates for different jobs whereas the ai
of perforance appraisal is to deterine incentives and rewards for superior
perforance.
7ob Design
%.
/lthough job anal$sis is iportant for an understanding of e9isting jobs>
organi:ations also ust plan for new jobs and periodicall$ consider whether the$
should revise e9isting jobs. 4hen an organi:ation is e9panding> supervisors and
huan resource professionals ust help plan for new or growing wor, units. 4hen
an organi:ation is tr$ing to iprove ;ualit$ or efficienc$> a review of wor, units
and processes a$ re;uire a fresh loo, at how jobs are designed.
&hese situations call for job design> the process of defining how wor, will be
perfored and what tas,s will be re;uired in a given job or job design> a siilar
process that involves changing an e9isting job design.
%pproaches to job design
&he available approaches ephasi:e different aspects of the job= the echanics of
doing a job efficientl$> the jobBs ipact on otivation> the use of safe wor,
practices and the ental deands of the job.
If wor,ers perfor tas,s as efficientl$ as possible> not onl$ does the organi:ation
benefit fro lower costs and greater output per wor,er> but wor,ers should be less
fatigued. &his point of view for $ears fored the basis of classical engineering. It is
the stud$ of jobs to find the siplest wa$ to structure wor, in order to a9iise
efficienc$.
'2
Design for Mental
Capacity
Filtering information
Clear displays &
instruction
Memory aids
Memory aids

Design for
Ergonomics
(Ergonomics
Design for
Motivation
Job enlargement
Job enric!ment
"eam#or$
Fle%ibility
Design for Efficiency
(&ndustrial
Engineering
J'(
#speciall$ when organi:ations copete for eplo$ees> a pure focus on efficienc$
will not achieve huan resource objectives. &hese organi:ations need jobs that
eplo$ees find interesting L satisf$ing and job design should ta,e into account
factors that a,e jobs otivating to eplo$ees.
#rgonoics is the stud$ of the interface between individualsB ph$siolog$ and the
characteristics of the ph$sical wor, environent. &he goal of ergonoics is to
iniise ph$sical strain on the wor,er b$ restructuring the ph$sical wor,
environent around the wa$ huan bod$ wor,s. #rgonoics> therefore> focuses on
outcoes such as reducing ph$sical fatigue> aches and pains and health coplaints.
#rgonoicall$ designed wor, e;uipent can inii:e the strain on eplo$ees and
this a$ lead to increased efficiencies.
3ust as the huan bod$ has capabilities and liitations> the ind> too> have
capabilities and liitations. &here are wa$s to siplif$ a jobBs ental deands.
One is to liit the aount of inforation and eori:ation that the job re;uires.
Organi:ations can also provide ade;uate lighting> eas$ to understand displa$s>
siple to operate e;uipent and clear instructions. Often> eplo$ees tr$ to siplif$
soe of the ental deands of their own jobs b$ creating chec,lists> charts or other
aids. &oda$ ost stores have cash registers that copute the change due and displa$
that aount. &he cash registers displa$ a,es the job easier. 0inall$> organi:ations
can select eplo$ees with the necessar$ abilities to handle a jobBs ental deands.
Methods of 7ob Design8
+oe of the popular ethods used to iprove the otivating potential of jobs are
given below=
'1
a" 'o( ,nlarge"ent. In a job design> job enlargeent refers to broadening the t$pes
of tas,s perfored. &he objective of job enlargeent is to a,e jobs less repetitive
and ore interesting. Methods of job enlargeent include job e9tension and job
rotation.
b" 'o( e-tension= is enlarging jobs b$ cobining several relativel$ siple jobs to
for a job with a wider range of tas,s. /n e9aple ight be cobining the jobs
of receptionist> t$pist and file cler, into jobs containing all three ,inds of jobs.
&his approach is relativel$ siple but if all the tas,s are dull> wor,ers will not be
necessaril$ being ore otivated b$ the redesigned job.
c" 'o( rotation does not actuall$ redesign the jobs theselves but oves
eplo$ees aong several different jobs. &his approach is coon aong
'%
Job
Simplification
Job
Enric!ment
Job
Enlargement
Job )otation
Job Design
production teas. During the course of a wee,> a tea eber a$ carr$ out
each of the jobs handled b$ the tea. &ea ebers ight asseble
coponents one da$ and pac, products into case another da$.
d" 'o( ,nrich"ent &he idea of 3ob #nrichent or epowering wor,ers b$ adding
ore decision a,ing authorit$ to their jobs> coes fro 0rederic, 1er:berg.
/ccording to his &wo5 0acto &heor$> individuals are otivated ore b$ the
intrinsic aspects of wor, @for e9aple> the eaningfulness of a job" than b$
e9trinsic rewards such as pa$. 1er:berg identified ) factors I achieveent>
recognition> growth> responsibilit$ and perforance I associated with
otivating jobs. 0or a sales person in a store> job enrichent ight involve the
authorit$ to resolve custoer probles including the authorit$ to decide whether
to issue refunds or replace the coodit$.
Chapter :-Manpower Planning 9n ;"an
I. Introduction..............................................................................................................'4
1. Deographic Developents +ince 1.(2..............................................................'4
a. !opulation 6rowth............................................................................................'4
''
b. Deographic Characteristics=...........................................................................')
c. Regional Distribution........................................................................................'6
%. *abor 0orce Developents...................................................................................'(
a. !articipation in #conoic /ctivit$...................................................................'(
b. Developent of *abor 0orce +i:e and Its Distribution in the Categor$ of
7ationals and Categor$ of #9patriates.....................................................................'.
c. Developents in the +i:e of the Oani *abor 0orce.......................................'.
d. Characteristics of the Oani *abor 0orce........................................................42
e. 4ages> +alaries and Incoes............................................................................44
f. 8neplo$ed Oanis and the Main Characteristics of 3ob +ee,ers..................46
'. *abor *egislation..................................................................................................4.
a. *egal 0raewor, 6overning #plo$ent in the 6overnent +ector............4.
b. *egal 0raewor, 6overning #plo$ent in the !rivate +ector.....................4.
C. Oani *abour *aw I Recent Changes and /endents
4. #9patriate labor and Oani:ation issues..............................................................)%
a. +i:e and characteristics of e9patriate labor.......................................................)%
b. &he econoic viabilit$ of e9patriate labor........................................................)'
c. &he Oani:ation !olic$ and Its Dilea........................................................)4
). !olicies and 0uture ?ision of #plo$ent..........................................................)6
II. Conclusion................................................................................................................)-
I. Introduction
#plo$ent is a atter of paraount interest to sustainable huan developent
overtures. &he focus is not onl$ on building huan capabilities through the ac;uisition
of ,nowledge> s,ills and productivit$ gains> but also on epowering people to appl$
these abilities to worthwhile activities and hence generate incoes sufficient to fulfill
their various needs. /lbeit that econoic growth is a necessar$ condition for huan
'4
developent> $et the econoic growth that is desirable> fro the standpoint of huan
developent> is 5 as entioned in chapter one 5 the job5creating growth that generates
enough eplo$ent opportunities for all citi:ens available for wor, and not the growth
with which uneplo$ent rises and societ$ does not reap the benefits of efforts and
one$ spent in building huan capacities and foring huan capital.
*. Demographic Developments #ince *92:
Other than the statistics of 1..' which saw the conduct of the first general census of
population> houses and establishents> statistics available about population count in Oan
are but estiates Of projections based on scant$ surve$s or assuptions and diverse
interpretations. +ince 1.(2> the governent has given high priorit$ to education in order
to develop a doestic wor, force> which the governent considers a vital factor in the
countr$Fs econoic and social progress. In 1.-6> OanFs first universit$> +ultan Oaboos
8niversit$> opened. Other post5secondar$ institutions include a law school> technical
college> ban,ing institute> teachersF training college> and health sciences institute. +oe
%22 scholarships are awarded each $ear for stud$ abroad.
7ine private colleges e9ist> providing %5$ear post5secondar$ diploas. +ince 1...> the
governent has ebar,ed on refors in higher education designed to eet the needs of a
growing population. 8nder the refored s$ste> four public regional universities were
being created> and incentives are provided b$ the governent to proote the upgrading of
the e9isting nine private colleges and the creation of other degree5granting private
colleges.
a8 Population #rowth
OanFs population increased fro 6)- thousand in 1.(2 to %>42% illion in %222. &he
population si:e of Oan increased fro appro9iatel$ 1.% illion in 1.-2 to
appro9iatel$ %.- illion in %212. It is e9pected that the population will ,eep on
increasing to reach '.( illion in %2)2. &he growth rate of the population in Oan
dropped fro ).%- percent for the period 1.-21.-) to 2.%. percent for the period 1..)
%222> and then increased to %.(1 percent in the period %22)%212. /vailable projections
indicate that the growth rate will be within %.6G in the first decade of the %1st centur$ and
that the populations a$ reach ) illions b$ %2%).
&he proportion of the e9patriatesF population increased fro 2.)G in 1.(2 to 1-G in
1..2 and to %)G in %222.
Census results
')
/otal
population
;"ani
population
,-patriate
population
1<<4 %>222>222 1>46)>222 @('.'G" )')>222 @%6.(G"
2004 %>'42>-1) 1>(-1>))- @(6.1G" )).>%)( @%'..G"
2010 %>(('>4(. 1>.)(>''6 @(2.6G" -16>14' @%..4G"
+ource . +ultanate of Oan Ministr$ of 7ational #cono$
/ccording to the %212 census> the total population was %>(('>4(. and of those>
1>.)(>''6 were Oanis. &he population has grown fro %>'42>-1) illion in the %22'
census. (2.)G were Oanis. 0eales constituted two5fifth of the total population
@41..G" and around half of the Oani !opulation @4..4G". &he se9 ratio of the Oani
population was 12% ales for ever$ 122 feales> copared to '%2 aong e9patriates
<ecause of the cobination of a relativel$ sall Oani population and a fast5growing
oil5driven econo$> Oan has attracted an$ igrants. /t the %212 census the total
e9patriate population was -16>222 or %..4G of the population. 4ith the increase in
developent activit$ and the need to copensate for the deficiencies of the Oani
populace in ters of si:e and copetencies re;uired for the ipleentation of
developent projects.
(8 5e"ographic Characteristics.
Oan has a $oung nation> as the $oungsters @less than 1) $ears" represent 4.G of the total
Oani population according to the 1..6 labor force surve$. It is rec,oned that this
percentage ight have dropped to 4'G in %222. 1owever> the ratio of the $oung
population to the entire populace @Oanis and non5Oan is" stood at onl$ ')G in %222
because of sall $oung foreign population> as low as 11.4G in the sae $ear.
&he proportion of the population under 1) $ears of age has been decreasing since 1..)
and is projected to continue this downward trend till the $ear %2)2. /t the sae tie> the
proportion of the wor,ingage group @1)64" has been increasing since 1..2> where it rose
fro )%.1 percent to reach (2.' percent in %212. It is projected to reach a pea, of (4.1
percent in %2'2. &he proportion of the elderl$ @6)E" population declined fro %.6 percent
in 1.-2 to %.% percent in 1..)> then increased to %.- percent in %22) onl$ to drop again to
%.) in %212.
&he results of the %212 !opulation Census has also revealed that around 61G of the
Oani population were in the age group @1)I64" $ears with children under 1) $ears of
age accounting for ')G. &he age distribution for the total population differ due to the
effect of the e9patriate labour force> where children below the age of fifteen $ears
constituted %-G in coparison to (2G in the wor,ing age group @1)I64" $ears.
It can broadl$ be said that soaring $oung population ratio> usuall$ leads to increasing
investent outla$s in social sector projects @such as health and education" in proportion to
'6
total investents> at the e9pense of investents in the anufacturing sectors. /s it is well
,nown the dependence burden tends to heighten with the increase in the ratio of $oung
population. &his burden is estiated at a dependence rate of 6 dependents per each Oani
in paid eplo$ent. 8n;uestionabl$> the intense of dependenc$ burden to that e9tent has
adverse econoic repercussions> Fanifested>F aong other atters> in dwindling savings
and investents.
c8 Regional 5istri(ution
&he +ultanate is adinistrativel$ divided into eleven governorates. 6overnorates are> in
turn> divided into 62 wila$ats.
/d Da,hili$ah
/d Dhahirah 7orth
/l <atinah 7orth
/l <atinah +outh
/l <uraii
/l 4usta
/sh +har;i$ah 7orth
/sh +har;i$ah +outh
Dhofar
Muscat
Musanda
/a(le 181-Regional 5istri(ution of the Population
Region 1<<4 1<<= 2000 2010
Muscat %(.%G %6.'G %(.)G %(.'G
<atinah %-G %-.%G %(.-G %-.'G
Musanda 1.4G 1.)G 1.4G 1.%G
Dhahira .G .G .G ).)
Da,hli$$a 11.4G 11G 11.'G 11.(G
+har;i$$a 1%.-G 1'.'G 1%.-G 1%..)G
4usta 2.-G 2.(G 2.-G 1.%G
Dhofar ..4G 12G ..4G ..'G
In %222> ore than half of the Oani population @)).%G" were living in Muscat
6overnorate and <atinah region whereas a little ore than two fifth of the population
@4%.)G" were in +har;i$$a> Da,hli$$a and Dhahira regions and 6overnorate of
Dhofar. &he 4usta region and Musanda governorate are the least populated areas in
Oan> accounting for onl$ %.%G of the total population.
'(
In the area of housing and housing conditions according to%212 censes> the results
indicate an increase in the proportion of odern housing units li,e apartents and
villas. &he indicators show up fro 42.. per cent in the %22' to its current level of 4-.6
G. !roportion of housing units supplied b$ water through water networ,s> governent
water points and bottled water as source for drin,ing water increased fro ().' per
cent in %22' to its current level of -(.( per cent. &his carries positive ipact on health
conditions in general and on child health in particular.
+. "abor &orce Developments
a8 Participation in ,cono"ic Acti1ity
Oani people> and siilarl$ /rabs in general and people fro the 6ulf in particular>
are invariabl$ characteri:ed b$ low participation rate in econoic activit$. &he crude
participation rate @i.e. ratio of econoicall$ active population to total Oani
population" was onl$ 1.G in 1..6. &his percentage is rec,oned to have increased to
the tune of %1 G in %222.
&he corrected participation rate of Oanis @i.e. ratio of econoicall$ active population
to total population within wor,5age" is higher than the crude rate and was estiated to
be within the region of '(.)G in 1..6 and up to '-.4G in %222. &he low participation
rate is attributed to the elevated percentage of $oung Oani population as entioned
in (51> i.e. high ratio of population below the wor,5age> the increase in educationBs"
enrolent rate and woenFs low participation rate in econoic activit$> though this
rate trended upward fro '.%G to (.4G between 1..' and %222 as shown in figure (5
1.
'-
&igure ;23+< Developments in the percentage shares of Oman is and e1patriates in the
labor force
/s the ajorit$ of the e9patriates are econoicall$ active> and as the$ represent high
percentage of the total population> the crude participation rate for the entire population
@Oanis and non Oanis" rose to '(G in 1..6> and reained at this level well into %222.
/ccording to %212 censes. &he anpower constitutes around 6)G of Oanis @1>%66>6')
people". &he labour force aounted to ).2>-)- Oanis foring around '2G of the Oani
anpower. %6.-G of the Oani labour force were feales. 61.)G of those feales were
wor,ing. )-.'G of wor,ing Oani woen are in public sector and onl$ -.-G are in the
fail$ sector.
'.
(8 5e1elop"ent of 6a(or orce +i>e an! 9ts 5istri(ution in the Category of 0ationals an!
Category of ,-patriates
&he total labor force was estiated at around -.2 thousand in %222 against
appro9iatel$ 4(4 thousand in 1..2> an average growth rate of 6.)G.
&he growth in the e9patriate labor force> which increased fro %(% thousand in 1..2 to
)%4 thousand in %222> at an average annual growth of 6.-G was greater than the
growth in the Oani labor force which grew fro %21 thousand to '66 thousand> i.e.
average growth rate of 6.%G during the sae period.
/s can be seen in figure (5%> the ratio of Oanis to total labor force decreased fro
6(.-G in 1.(6 to 4%.)G in 1..2> then to 41 G in %222. In contrast> the ratio of
e9patriate labor increased fro '%.%G in 1.(6 to )(.)G in 1..2 and then up to ).G in
%222> which eans that the ratio of e9patriate labor to total labor force increased fro
about one third to two thirds within a span of %% $ears.
/ccording to the census %212> with a population of around ' illion> ore than one5
third are foreigners. #9pats are ore heavil$ represented in the private sector whereas
ost Oani nationals are eplo$ed in the public sector. /ccording to the local /rabic
dail$> $man> the ilestone was reached with statistics putting the total nuber of
e9patriate wor,ers in the sultanate at 1>26)>1)- as of end5March %212.+tatistics also
revealed that the nuber of e9patriate wor,ers in the construction sector stands at
6.2>222> while there are %6)>222 e9patriates in the service sector> ((>222 in the
agriculture sector> and 1%1>222 in the I& sector.
/t the senior anager level> there are '(>.-2 e9patriates> and in the $ear %21'> '1(
were appointed to even higher positions.
c8 5e1elop"ents in the +i>e of the ;"ani 6a(or orce
Oani labor force increased fro %(% thousand in 1..' to '66 thousand in %222. &he
estiates indicate that it will further increase at an increasing rate during the coing
decade.
0or that indicator> the 4orld <an, provides data for Oan fro 1..2 to %212. &he
average value for Oan during that period was )6.)6 percent with a inuu of
)'.) percent in %22% and a a9iu of 62 percent in %212.
&he participation rate of Oani woen in the econoic activit$ substantiall$
increased in %212 copared to 1..'> where the nuber of econoicall$ active feales
increased fro ''>%61 representing around .G of the total econoicall$ active Oanis
to 1)->612 representing %6.-G of econoicall$ active Oanis in %212. Conse;uentl$>
the econoic participation rate of Oani woen increased @i.e. the percentage of
econoicall$ active woen fro the total woen population in the age group 1) $ears
and above" fro 6..G to around %)G during the period under reference and 1-.(G in
%22'. &he anticipated increase in woenFs rate of participation in econoic activit$ is
42
envisaged to have a profound effect on the growth in the Oani labor force. &hese
estiates point to the e9pected huge increase in Oani labor suppl$ and reflect the
vast opus re;uired to create e9tra job opportunities for new Oani entrants to the labor
ar,et and to replace e9patriates b$ Oanis.
!8 Characteristics of the ;"ani 6a(or orce
&he results of the labor force saple surve$ conducted in %222> indicated that ).G of
wor,ing Oanis were in the age5group under ') $ears> whereas the percentage of
those less than 4) $ears was (.G> i.e. the ajorit$ of the were fro the $oung
population segent. &he surve$ also revealed that the ajorit$ of wor,ing Oanis
were en> -6.'G while woen accounted for onl$ 1'.(G.
&he ajorit$ of wor,ing Oanis in the $ear %222 were pre5secondar$ and secondar$
school leavers @-6G" and onl$ @14G" had post5secondar$ education. /s shown in
figure (5' there is an obvious variance between the distribution of wor,ing Oanis and
those loo,ing for wor, with respect to educational attainentP &he distribution of
those wor,ing is not uch different fro the distribution of the entire wor,ing Oani
population @-'G secondar$ or pre5secondar$> 1(G postsecondar$"> but the distribution
of job see,ers shows that the ajorit$ of those loo,ing for jobs are pre and secondar$
school leavers @.6G"> while those see,ing eplo$ent with postsecondar$
;ualifications account for onl$ @4G".
&igure
;23,<
41
Distribution of the Omani labor force3Individuals in paid emploment and
individuals see$ing emploment according to educational attainment in the ear
+::: ;=<
+ource= Ministr$ of 7ational #cono$> *abor force surve$ for the $ear %222
Iproveent in the educational achieveent of Oani citi:ens reflected clearl$ on the
wor,ing Oani population. /s can be seen fro the results of the labor force surve$
%222 there is tangible increase in the percentage of wor,ing population with secondar$
and post5secondar$ ;ualification in the $ounger age5groups copared to older age5
groups.
&his percentage reached )%G for Oanis in the age5group 1)5%. $ears> whereas it did
not e9ceed '1 G for the age5group '2544 $ears> and not ore than 6G for the age5
group 4) and above. It is noted that the average $ears of education of Oanis
eplo$ed in the public sector increased fro ).6 in 1..' to ( in 1..6> and fro %.- to
4.1 for eplo$ees in the private sector.
/s regards the distribution of wor,ing Oani population according to eplo$ent
t$pe> the labor force surve$ conducted in %222 revealed that the ajorit$ of wor,ing
Oanis wereQ eplo$ed in paid jobs. Of course> this is not unusual in ost /rab
countries. /t the sae tie> the percentage of business owners did not e9ceed %G>
whereas the percentage of the self5eplo$ed reached 12G and the percentage of those
who wor, without pa$ was as low as @1 G".
<$ all eans> there is no reed$ for this unbalanced distribution of wor,ing FOanis>
e9cept through increasing the percentage of business owners and the self5eplo$ed on
one hand> and reducing the percentage of those in paid jobs on the other It is against
this bac,ground> cae the initiative to encourage Oanis to start and anage sall
4%
businesses. / case in point is +anad !roject in support of sall projects as outlined in
bo9 (51.
&he developent in the occupational distribution of Oanis eplo$ed in both
governent and private sectors between 1..2 and %222 shows an increase in their
nuber in all ain occupational categories> with the e9ception of the categor$ of the
technicians and assistant specialists.
/s can be seen fro table (5% there is a clear concentration of wor,ing Oanis in the
occupations of specialists> cler,s> service providers> sales personnel > operators of
achineries> e;uipent and land transport> assebl$ wor,ers and those eplo$ed in
subordinatedQ occupations> as their ratio rose fro 6'.(G in 1..2 to ()G in %222.
&he categor$ of the specialist witnessed the highest annual growth rate @..-G"
followed b$ achiner$ and e;uipent operators> transport wor,ers and cler,s. It is
stri,ing that the categor$ of technicians and assistant technicians did not record an$
growth> but on the contrar$ declined at an average annual rate of 5%.-G during 1..25
%222. &he nuber of those in the *egal profession and senior officials also declined
during the sae period at an average annual rate of 5'.4G.
4hile these statistics reflect high educational attainent and professional standards of
Oani labor force> it also highlights soe flaws in the preparation of technicians and
vocational training of dropouts fro general education resulting in their entrance to the
labor ar,et without proper training.
&his in turn> bloc,s their recruitent in technical and professional occupations b$
private corporate> and therefore> hinders their efforts of replacing e9patriates in such
occupations that constitute a ajor portion of jobs available in the private sector.
4'
Bo- ?81
+ana! Pro7ect in support of s"all pro7ects
In the light of conclusions revealed b$ the labor force saple surve$ %222> soe
-(G of wor,ing Oanis were in paid jobs. In an effort to cap this percentage it
was thought that pragatic policies L plans of action should be evolved to
encourage Oanis to start sall business with especial ephasis on financial
policies and procedures. In this conte9t the +anad project was launched in Oct
%221 and was allocated % illion Oani Rials to give support and develop sall
businesses.
!able ;23+< Occupational distribution of wor$ing Omanis in *99: and +:::
Major Occupational Categories *99: +::: %verage
%nnual
)rowth rate
8nclassified 2.4 5
*egislators and +enior Officials 4.6 '.% 5'.4
+pecialists 6 12.- ..-
&echnicians L /ssistant +pecialists 1. 12.' 5%.-
Cler,s 1%.1 1'.( 4.(
+ervice L sales personnel %1.% %'.% 4.'
+,illed wor,er in agriculture> anial
husbandr$ and fishing
(.. 6.- 1..
!rofessional L /rtisan 4.( 4.( '.4
Machiner$> #;uipent L &ransport
Operators
..) 1%.- 6.6
4or,ers #plo$ed in +ubsidiar$ jobs 1) 14.1 %.(
)rand !otal
*:: *:: ,.-
/vailable statistics about the distribution of wor,ing Oanis in private and
governent sectors as shown in table (5' show an increase in the wor,ing population
between 1..2 and %222 fro )1 to -6 thousand in the private sector and fro 1)2 to
1-' thousand in the governent sector.
&he average annual growth rate of labor in the private sector at @).)G" was ore than
two5fold fro the growth rate in governent sector @%G". /s such the private sector
share of wor,ing Oanis increased fro around %)G in 1..2 to ')G in %222A whereas
the governent sector share decreased fro ()G to 6)G during the sae period.
&he progress of the Oani labor force in this anner cae as a natural result of the
national efforts e9erted to develop huan resources and actuate their role in econoic
activit$ and also as a natural outcoe of the Oani:ation polic$.
/s regards the distribution of wor,ing Oanis in the private sector over various
econoic sectors> inforation available and presented in table (5' point to an increase
in the participation ratios pertaining to the anufacturing> construction> transport>
storage and counication sectors.
&he data also indicate a decline in the participation rates pertaining to agriculture>
fishing and real estate sectors. #lectricit$> gas> water supplies Qand anufacturing
sectors saw the highest annual growth rate.
44
!able ;23,< Distribution of wor$ing Omanis over various economic sectors
#ectors > Main Economic %ctivit
*99: +:::
%verage
%nnual
!rivate sector@1222 #plo$ee" )1 -6 ).)
/griculture L 0ishing '%.1G 14.'G 5%.-
Mining L Ouarries 1%.'G ..-G '.1
Manufacturing Industries ).6G 1'.4G 1)
#lectricit$> 4ater L 6as 2.)G 1.'G 16.4
Construction L <uilding 6.'G 2..G ..1
4holesale L Retail trade> restaurant> hotels L
?ehicle repair 1-.1G 1..-G
6.'
&ransport> +torage and Counications 12.)G 1(.-G 11.1
!ublic L !ersonal +ervices 6.(G 11.6G 11.'
Real #state> Rental /ctivities L Coercial
?entures (..G '.2G
5'
6overnent +ector @1222 #plo$ees" 1)2 1-' %
!otal Omani Emploees ;*::: Emploees<
+:* +?+ ,.-
+ource. Ministr$ of 7ational #cono$
e8 )ages$ +alaries an! 9nco"es
&he labor force surve$ conducted in %222 showed that 6-.6G of wor,ing Oanis
earned average onthl$ salar$ of '22 Oani Rials or less> and %2G earned salaries
ranging fro '21 to )22 Oani Rials. Onl$ 11 G earned average salar$ in e9cess of
)22 O.R. &he iniu wage is set at 122 OR for Oan is and there is no iniu
wage for e9patriate wor,ers.
&he household incoe and e9penditure surve$ 1...D%222 provided diverse
inforation about wages and salaries that varied with governorates and regions> t$pe of
eplo$ent of fail$ head> gender> nationalit$ and sectoral institutions. &he average
Oani household incoe fro salaries and wages ranged froQ )21 O.R. @in 4usta
region" to .412.R. @in governorate of Muscat" i.e. an average of (6% O.R.
/s regards the disparit$ in average incoe in relation to t$pe of eplo$ent of the
fail$ head> the waged wor,ers earned incoe of ()2 O.R. while the onthl$ incoe
of self5eplo$ed business owner did not e9ceed )-1 O.R.
4hile the average onthl$ incoe of salaried eplo$ees aounted to 41) O.R. for
woen> it aounted to 4'% O.R. for en at a cobined average of R.O. '... It is
noted that the average onthl$ incoe of wor,ing Oani an or woan was higher
than the average onthl$ incoe of a corresponding e9patriate.
&he average onthl$ incoe of e9patriates did not e9ceed ''. R.O. for woen and
RO '2) for en> a cobined average of '-4 R.O. &he average onthl$ incoe of
4)
salaried e9patriates did not generall$ e9ceed (2G> -%G and ((G of the average
onthl$ incoe of counterpart Oani ales> feales and both ales and feales
respectivel$.
&igure ;23-<3Distribution of wor$ing Omanis per salar range in public8 and private
sectors
+ource. Ministr$ of 7ational #cono$> *abor force surve$ 1..6
/s can be seen in figure (54 the onthl$ salar$ range of public sector eplo$ees is
higher than the corresponding range of private sector eplo$ees> as 42G
appro9iatel$ of eplo$ees in the public sector draw a onthl$ salar$ e9ceeding in
average R.O. '22 while onl$ around 1)G of the private sector eplo$ees earn that
uch. &his e9plains wh$ Oanis are highl$ intrigued b$ public eplo$ent.
f8 @ne"ploye! ;"anis an! the Main Characteristics of 'o( +ee*ers
&here is no general consensus on the issue of uneplo$ent aong copetent
authorities concerned in the +ultanate. <ecause each authorit$ sees to adopt its own
definition of uneplo$ent> the estiates of those loo,ing for jobs out of the total
Oani labor force are ;uite distorted.
&he adjusted results of the labor force surve$ %222> in accordance with the I*O
definition> which describes the uneplo$ed as the person available and actuall$
loo,ing for wor, for the wage prevalent in the ar,et> showed that 1'G of total Oani
labor force were loo,ing for wor, i.e. 1(G of total feale labor force and 1%G of total
ale labor force. &he si9th 0ive5Rear !lan estiated the uneplo$ent rate at about
14G during the period 1..)5%222.
46
&he data available about those loo,ing for wor, indicate that the ajorit$ of the are
jobless en @((G ales copared to %'G feales"> -'G of the are new entrants to
the labor ar,et and 1(G have past e9perience> (4G of the are $outh fro the age
group 1)5%4 $ears and ost of the @.2G" are unarried depending on their parents.
It is noted that the ajorit$ of those loo,ing for wor, @.4G" were of educational
attainent not e9ceeding secondar$ level @4)G preparator$ and less> 4.G secondar$".
&he percentage of those loo,ing for wor, with educational achieveents be$ond the
secondar$ level was '..G with technical and interediate collegeBs educational
achieveent and 1.(G with universit$ educational achieveent.
8nfortunatel$> the situation in the +ultanate of Oan appears even worse> with results
fro the population census for %212 indicating that the volue of Oani anpower
was about 1>%66>6') people> of who onl$ ').%.G were eplo$ed> %4.')G loo,ing
for jobs and %).'2G engaged in doestic wor,. &he education level of the Oani
shows no better than that of anpower. Census results indicated that --G of the
population over ten $ears of age had ac;uired secondar$ school level and nearl$ one
third of this population was either illiterate or had onl$ copleted eleentar$ school
level. Onl$ 6.%G hold <./ degrees while MasterFs and !hD holders were less than 1G.
&igure ;23/< 3 Distribution of those loo$ing for wor$ across the governorates and
regions of the #ultanate in +:::
0ro the above it can be seen that the ajorit$ of job see,ers are dropouts fro the
general educational levels or graduates fro the secondar$ level. /s such> the$ are not
4(
professionall$ and technicall$ ;ualified to wor,> render the helpless to erge into the
labor ar,et.
+o> if this basic isatch between the outputs of the e9isting educational s$ste>
which is built upon acadeic education> and the re;uireents of the labor ar,et for
ore professionals and technicians> continues> Oanis will be faced with a hideous
rise in uneplo$ent. &his will have enorous negative ipacts on huan resources
developent and on sustainable huan developent universall$.
/s can be seen in figure (5) there is a clear concentration of those loo,ing for wor, in
the <atinah region @'4G"> @1(G" in the governorate of Muscat and @14G" in the
)har;i$$a region i.e. two thirds of the are concentrated in these three regions> with
low presence in the governorate of Musanda and the 4usta region.
&he labor force surve$ of %222 revealed that -'.)G of the jobless have been loo,ing
for wor, for ore than a $ear.
It is worth entioning that uneplo$ent aong Oanis is not conS fined to visible
uneplo$ent> but it also e9ists to soe degree in the for of disguised
uneplo$ent in both public and private sectors. Disguised uneplo$ent in the
private sector sees to be attributed to the Oani:ation drive that pushed private
establishents into hiring ore Oanis erel$ to satisf$ the Oani:ation
re;uireents prescribed b$ foral creed as sine ;ua non condition for eplo$ing
e9patriates or retaining e9isting non5Oani staff.
&he causes of uneplo$ent> on the basis of obtainable surve$s and studies> can be
sued5up in the following=
1. 6rowth in !opulation
%. Increase in rates of participation of Oani woen in the labor ar,et. &hough
increasingl$ ore woen are entering the labor ar,et> but lac,ing in transferabilit$
and ver$ difficult to relocate to where their services are re;uired.
'. Man$ econoic activities belong to the recentA contraction of the traditional sector>
increase in the nuber of paid wor,ers and decrease in the nuber of the self5
eplo$ed.
4. Retrenched public e9penditure and a shrun,en role of the governent as an eplo$er.
). Dependence of the private sector on e9patriates. &he ain rationale for this is an
econoic one> as this sector believes that e9patriates are less costl$ and ore
productive than the Oani labor.
6. #conoic downturn in the nineties of the %2thcentur$> especiall$ in the second half of
the nineties.
4-
It is worth entioning that a foral debate is still going on to reach a consensus on the
nature of uneplo$ent aong Oanis> particularl$ on whether it is a voluntar$ or
involuntar$ uneplo$ent. Involuntar$ uneplo$ent arises when a person is
available and actuall$ see,ing paid eplo$ent with readiness to accept an offer for
the pa$ prevalent in the ar,etplace. <ut voluntar$ uneplo$ent arises when a
person see,s specific paid eplo$ent for a specific wage of his or her own choice.
?oluntar$ uneplo$ent also arises when a person decides to stop searching for a job
in despair and frustration.
It is noted that an unspecified percentage of Oani job see,ers are not willing to ta,e
up certain jobs occupied b$ e9patriates. &he$ also do not accept offers for a salar$
falling within the salar$ scale of e9patriates i.e. RO )2562. &here are soe other
Oanis who ight have given up on loo,ing for paid eplo$ent or self5eplo$ent
just because the$ have lost hope> and as such the$ are considered voluntaril$
uneplo$ed. *astl$> uneplo$ent a$ be defined voluntar$ in line with the nors>
just because the people loo,ing for eplo$ent decline to relocate to live and wor, in
places other than their doiciles. &his situation particularl$ applies to woen loo,ing
for eplo$ent and to a lesser e9tent to en.
,. "abor "egislation
/dvances in developent witnessed b$ the +ultanate during the past few decades
accopanied b$ e9pansion of the national econo$ and labor ar,et together with the
transforation of Oan Finto a odern societ$A necessitated institution of credible
legal and judicial fraewor, to ensure sealess functioning of the labor ar,et and
eventuall$ for the basis for huan resources developent> which would reflect
positivel$ on huan developent universall$. &he first legislative principles are
ebedded in the basic statute of the state> Fwhich stipulates= @&he +tate enacts the laws
that protect eplo$ers and eplo$ees and regulate the relationship between the.
#ach citi:en shall have the right to pursue an$ career of hisDher choice within the law.
It is not peritted to ipose involuntar$ wor, on an$bod$ e9cept b$ virtue of law and
onl$ to discharge national dut$ against s;uare reuneration."
a8 6egal ra"ewor* #o1erning ,"ploy"ent in the #o1ern"ent +ector
Ro$al Decree 7o. %6D() issuing the +tateFs adinistrative apparatus organi:ation law
ade another first in the sphere of adinistrative legislation. &hereafter> the first Civil
+ervice *aw was issued in 1.()> and then the second civil service law in the $ear 1.-2
which is still valid. In addition to that soe ore legislations were issued giving
autono$ to certain governent units.
Moreover> special acts were proulgated on pensions and post service eoluents for
civil servants and individuals eplo$ed in certain governent units and agencies to
ensure decent living conditions for governent eplo$ees upon retireent.
4.
Despite a lac, of trade unions and organi:ed associations of wor,ers in the governent
civil sector> an adinistrative court of justice was set up for the cogni:ance of
governent eplo$eesF grievances.
&he court is to see to it that justice is done to the governent eplo$ees and guarantee
their rights to bring an action against an$ official who abuses power in a wa$ that
deprives the of e;ual and ipartial treatent. &his underta,ing upholds practices
essentiall$ just and aintains e;ualit$ of opportunit$ between Oani people as
eplo$ees and citi:ens.
(8 6egal ra"ewor* #o1erning ,"ploy"ent in the Pri1ate +ector
&he Oani labor law was issued in 1.(' to regulate industrial relations and affairs of
eplo$ees in the private sector. &he law addressed all the relevant aspects such as
eplo$ent contracts> description of wor,> wages L salaries> disputes and wor,ing
hours etc. +everal aendents were introduced to this law to ,eep pace with econoic
and social progress and the growth in private sector establishents.
In 1..1> Ro$al Decree 7o. (%D.1 was issued proulgating the social insurance law>
which provide for the right of wor,ers to old age pension to ensure decent living
conditions for the and for their inor dependants upon death. &he law also provides
for reasonable copensations in case of injur$ or sic,ness.
In view of the prevailing circustances in the local labor ar,et where e9patriates
constitute a high percentage of the labor force in the private sector> the e9igencies of
national interest in building a stable civil societ$ did not allow for the foration of an$
organi:ed associations of wor,ers in the past three decades.
1owever> article 121 of the Oani labor law stipulates that an$ eplo$er who has )2
wor,ers or ore shall subit to the inister concerned proposals for establishent of
representation bod$Dbodies jointl$ coprising wor,ers and. eplo$erFs pro9ies>
together with the proposed articles of association of such bodies.
&his is to ensure a echanis for trilateral representation of the three relevant parties
@the governent5 wor,ers 5 proprietors". &he inister shall approve the proposal with
or without aendents. &his article also stipulates that the ebers of these
associations shall neither enjo$ an$ privileges nor shall the$ bear an$ burdens.
&he Ministr$ of *abor force endeavors to aicabl$ settle disputes between eplo$ees
and eplo$ers.
&he *abor inspection departent within the Ministr$ ensures enforceent of the labor
law provisions. &he law re;uires eplo$ers who have a labor force of )2 wor,ers or
ore to put in place a grievance procedure. In case of non5copliance b$ such
eplo$ers> the wor,er reserves the right to coplain to the departent concerned to
)2
intervene in the dispute. If a settleent could not be reached> then the dispute is
referred to the Coercial Court.
!able 23- "abor cases before the commercial court in *99? and decision thereof
Details (o. of
Cases
In favor of
Emploees
In favor of
Establishment
Oani %%6 .- 1%-
7on5Oani %%1 1(' 4-
!otal
--2 +2* *20
It is evident fro table (54 that the nuber of labor cases appears to be ver$ sall
relative to the si:e of private sector labor ar,et> which coprises ore than F122
thousand establishents and ore than half a illion of white L blue5collar wor,ers.
&his is probabl$ attributed to the efforts of the labor care and dispute settleent
departents in stri,ing aicable settleents to the satisfaction of both ;uarreling
parties without resorting to legal actions in Courts of law.
It is generall$ noted that the echanis for the settleent of labor disputes in the
+ultanate relies on aicable and friendl$ spirit> which have its origins in the historical
and cultural heritage of the Oani people and their characteristic social values.
7evertheless> the advances achieved b$ the +ultanate in various wal,s of life> political>
econoical and social re;uire revap of legislations governing labor and industrial
relationships in a wa$ haronious with the developents in regional and global
arenas.
C. ;"ani 6a(our 6aw Recent Changes an! A"en!"ents
+ith ,oyal -ecree .o. //0123// amendments and changes to the $mani 4abour
4a, ,oyal -ecree .o. 0512330 has been published. The aim to the ne changes
has been to clear up uncertain areas in the 4abour 4a. The changes are quite far6
reaching, in particular to changes in or!ing hours, overtime, leave, etc.
&he ost significant change is introducing the )5da$ wor,ing wee,. Conse;uentl$>
the a9iu wor,ing hours has been reduced fro 4- hours a wee, to 4) hours
per wee,> /rt. 6- O**. During the onth of Raadan> the a9iu wor,ing
hours per wee, has been also reduced to '2 hours per wee,. 1owever> the dail$
wor,ing hours of . hours has been aintained> whereas the eplo$er ust grant the
eplo$ee now a % da$ wee,end and thus reducing the wor,ing wee, fro a si95da$
wee, to a five5da$ wee,.
/ further change has been passed with respect to overtie. &he new Ro$al Decree
has capped the a9iu wor,ed hours a da$ b$ 1% hours> eaning that an
eplo$ee cannot a,e ore than ' hours per da$ overtie.
)1
18 Maternity 6ea1e
8nli,e the previous /rticle in the Oani *abour *aw respective aternit$ leave>
with the new aendents b$ Ro$al Decree 11'D%211 aternit$ leave has been
increased to )2 da$s @previousl$ a9iu 6 wee,s as per /rt. -' O**". &his
entitleent is liited to a a9iu of three separate sets of aternit$ leave during
eplo$ent.
28 Annual 6ea1e
/ccording to the e9isting Oani *abour *aw> each eplo$ee was entitled to
receive in the first $ear of eplo$ent 1) calendar da$s of leave. &his entitleent
has now been increased to '2 da$s per $ear and is pa$able on the basis of the gross
salar$.
/dditionall$ the law stipulates that it is not an$ore perissible to waive an$
leave> eaning that that forwarding and carr$ing over leave is li,el$ to be held null
and void> with the effect that the eplo$er has to copensate the eplo$ee for an$
loss or not ta,en leave during eplo$ent or upon terination of eplo$ent.
48 ,"ergency 6ea1e
#ergenc$ leave according to /rt. 61 O** has been now increased fro 4 da$s to
6 da$s per $ear. In the past> eergenc$ leave was liited to % da$s at the sae tie.
&his rule has been abolished now. / new Ministerial Decision is e9pected soon to
regulate on how eergenc$ leave can be ta,en.
48 /ransfer of ,"ployees
4ith the ipleentation of the new Ro$al Decree 11'D%211> a new provision to
/rt. 4- of the O** concerning the sale> lease or li,e of a business has been added.
4here there is a transfer of an eplo$ent contract on a project fro one
contractor to the other> and the wor, to be carried out reains the sae> then
eplo$ees will be autoaticall$ transferred to the other contractor on the sae
ters and conditions as held under the old contractor.
:8 ;"anisation
6enerall$ eplo$ers ust eplo$ Oani wor,ers as far as possible. &he Ministr$
of Manpower @MOM" fro tie to tie has stipulated the percentage of
Oanisation re;uired in each sector of econoic activit$. 7ow with the aended
regulation> an eplo$er who does not eet the prescribed Oanisation target a$
fear to pa$ a penalt$ between OMR %)2 and OMR )22 for each Oani wor,er
re;uired to be eplo$ed. #ach eplo$er will have a tieline of 6 onth to eet the
re;uireent> otherwise the penalt$ will be doubled.
)%
-. E1patriate labor and Omani4ation issues
a8 +i>e an! characteristics of e-patriate la(or
Oan is one of the countries that host e9patriate labor as the case with the rest of the
6CC countries. &he prere;uisites for accelerating developent> ade possible b$ vast
flows of petrodollars> called for the recruitent of ore and ore e9patriates in the
absence of sufficient indigenous labor force in ters of ;uantit$ and ;ualit$.
+pecificall$ spea,ing> the si:e of e9patriate labor in Oan witnessed noticeable
increase in the nineties. Its nuber doubled during the period 1..25%222 and reached
)%4 thousand in %222 up fro %(% thousand in 1..2 as entioned earlier in figure (5%.
4ith the fast growth in the e9patriate labor force @at an annual rate of ..%G against
).4G in Oani labor">theF ratio of e9patriate labor to total labor force increased fro
)(.)G in 1..2 to ).G in %222> i.e. nearl$ two thirds of the total labor force.
It is noted that the share of governent sector in the e9patriate labor has decreased
fro 1-.%G in 1..2 to ).)G in %222> i.e. alost .)G of the e9patriates are eplo$ed
in OanFs private sector. /s shown in table (5) the trade sector accounted for theQ
highest rate of growth in eplo$ent of e9patriate labor> followed b$ agriculture and
services sector> industrial sector and lastl$ construction and building sector with a
growth rate of -.(G probabl$ due to the copletion of ost of basic infrastructure
projects in the seventies and the eighties.
!able ;23/< 3 Rates of growth in e1patriate labor 3 sector3wise during *99:3+:::
+ector Annual #rowth
/griculture ..'
Manufacturing 6.(
&rade 12
Construction L <uilding 6.6
Counit$ L !ersonal +ervice ..2
!otal
0.:
It is also noted that there is a discernible disparit$ between the educational
achieveent of e9patriates eplo$ed in the governent sector and those eplo$ed in
the private sectorsA #9patriates eplo$ed in governent agencies are ore highl$
;ualified> as ).G of the hold universit$ degree> while the educational achieveent of
-'G of the e9patriates eplo$ed in the private sector pass the preparator$ level.
4ith regard to gender> it is noted that feale e9patriates are ainl$ eplo$ed in
educational and health occupations. &heir nubers started to decrease in recent $ears
because of increased Oani feale graduates fro universities> colleges and institutes.
1owever the percentage of feale e9patriates eplo$ed in the private sector does not
e9ceed -.)G of the total e9patriate labor force. &he ajorit$ of the @((G" wor, as
doestic helpers and this is one of the jobs that Oani woen do not accept to ta,e.
&he nuber of e9patriates wor,ing as household servants was around 62 thousand in
%222.
)'
(8 /he econo"ic 1ia(ility of e-patriate la(or
#ntrepreneurs defend their iense and increasing dependence on e9patriate labor on
several grounds. &he ost iportant of which are low wage level> possession of
re;uired e9periences and s,ills necessar$ for accoplishing re;uired tas,s> higher
productivit$ and willingness to wor, longer hours and shorter holida$s. <usiness
owners clai that benefits fro all these advantages cannot be achieved if the$ eplo$
Oani labor. <ut if econoic viabilit$ fors the grounds for eplo$ing e9patriate
labor in the private sector> it is not e9actl$ clear wh$ the deand for such labor is
increasing at a rate e9cessivel$ surpassing the rate of growth in the 6D!. &he rate of
growth in e9patriate labor was ore than double the rate of growth in the 6D! during
the nineties @..%G labor against 4.%G 6D!". &his reflects high fle9ibilit$ of
eplo$ent and casts tangible doubt on the econoic viabilit$ of procuring such large
nubers of e9patriates registered in recent $ears. Over L above the nature of the
relationship between Oani:ation and standard of perforance is not clear as
entioned in bo9 ((%. 1owever> the governent is striving to liit procureent of
e9patriate to the actual re;uireents of the production and service sectors.
c8 /he ;"ani>ation Policy an! 9ts 5ile""a
In the conte9t of the genuine efforts ade b$ the governent to Oani:e jobs in the
private sector> the Ministerial Decision 7o. 1%(D.4 was issued prescribing var$ing
iniu percentages of Oani:ation in private sector establishents operating in
various sectors of the econo$ in accordance with the nature of their activities.
Moreover> several decisions were issued banning engageent of e9patriates in certain
occupations and restricting the e9clusivel$ to Oanis. /t one tie> the nuber of
e9patriate staff allowed into the countr$ was subject to a a9iu ;uota. / fee was
also levied as a deterrent easure to curb the inflow of e9patriate labor and to a,e
wa$ for the Oanis to get eplo$ent.
&he polic$ of Oani:ation and naturali:ation of jobs applied in the +ultanate ai at
tac,ling the distortions in the labor ar,et rooted in ibalances in the suppl$ of and
deand for labor and e9cessive procureent of e9patriate personnel> when there is a
surge in the nuber of citi:ens searching for wor,. &he advanceent in the area of
huan resources developent contributed to increasing suppl$ of Oani labor force
with diverse specialties and s,ills.
&he pace of Oani:ation in the public sector has not been identical to that in the
private sector. Oani:ation in the governent sector increased during the period 1..)5
%222 to (4G> while it reached appro9iatel$ 16.6G in the private sector during the
sae period> with enorous disparities between various sectors in Oani:ation levels.
&he private sector attributes the low percentage of Oani:ation to a host of reasons
entioned earlier> and ainl$ concerning productivit$> e9pertise> wages and wor,ing
hours. / field stud$ conducted b$ the Oani:ation onitoring and follow5up
)4
coittee on the realit$ and constraints hindering Oani:ation and training in the
private sector concluded that several obstacles were responsible forF ipeding the
progress of Oani:ation and nationali:ation of jobs. &hese can be suari:ed in the
following= 5
1. &he turnover of Oani staff in the private sector is ver$ high as the$ continuall$ loo,
for better prospects particularl$ in the public sector.
%. &he strong influence of e9patriates and their control of decision a,ing process in the
private sector establishents in addition to lac, of trust between Oani eplo$ees and
business owners.
'. &he e9planation and justification of the private sector of shrugging off Oani:ation on
grounds of low productivit$ and lac, of e9perience of Oani wor,ers besides their
unwillingness to wor, longer hours for a lower pa$. &his issue needs further stud$ as
noted in bo9 (5%.
In fact> the issue of Oani:ation interlaces with an$ other concerns in addition to the
proble of uneplo$ent aong Oanis. One of the ain issues interwoven with the
Oani:ation concern is econoic diversification and copetition in the era of
globali:ation> the ephasis placed on the private sector for industrial growth and
developent in addition to issues of education and training.
4henever the uneplo$ent issue is discussed> the ;uestion of Oani:ation is alwa$s
brought up concurrentl$ to the debate. <ut unfounded speculations of Oani:ation
aspirations should be avoided. It could not be logicall$ conjectured that about 46
thousand Oan is job see,ers would be able to replace )%4 thousand e9patriates.
&herefore> the calculated replaceent ratio is less than .G of total e9patriate labor.
1owever> the actual percentage is probabl$ far less than that in real ters> because
Oanis loo,ing for wor, are unli,el$ to ta,e up all t$pes of jobs filled b$ e9patriate
labor> and even if the$ ta,e up such jobs the$ a$ not accept the ,ind of wages paid to
e9patriates. In other words> even if we concur over the preise that there isQ undue and
unwarranted procureent of e9patriate labor> the liited suppl$ of Oani wor,ers and
their preferences for jobs act as two crucial restraints on the Oani:ation of jobs
especiall$ in the private sector.
On the other hand the issue of Oani:ation is also lin,ed to the creation of new job
opportunities and stronger stiulation of econoic growth b$ wa$ of diversification of
econoic activit$ in Oan.
1owever> Oani:ation probabl$ entails increase in labor cost and hence reduction in
the profitabilit$ envisaged b$ the private sector> which is the ain driver of the
diversification of econoic activit$. On the contrar$> opening up the ar,et for
e9patriate labor would probabl$ lead to a drop in prevailing wage rates so conse;uentl$
increase profitabilit$ and accelerate the diversification process> if such a process has
real potentials unassociated with the h$drocarbon sector.
))
8ndisputedl$> the rise or fall of labor costs have irrefutable ipact on the
copetitiveness of Oani products in both doestic and e9port ar,ets. &he vital
iportance of copetition can hardl$ be ignored against theF bac,drop of OanFs
aspirations to increasingl$ integrate with the global econo$ in this era of
globali:ation as incorporated in the 0uture ?ision for OanFs #cono$ 5 Oan %2%2.
/ controvers$ a$ arise between the advocates of Oani:ation and the advocates of
free5ar,et econo$ based on private enterprise. It will not be eas$ to control the
inflow of e9patriate labor in the presence of an open ar,et and e9ploitable
opportunities for soe Oanis to earn one$ via trading in visas> sponsorship fees>
and surrogate erchandr$.
/ctuall$> the issue of Oani:ation is not disconnected with the polic$ of education and
training. &he jobs> that are supposed to be provided b$ the current plan> which shall
aount to 112 thousand jobs> re;uire ;ualifications and copetencies that the outputs
of the e9isting education and training s$stes are ver$ doubtful to eet.
1owever> there are ;uite percentage of e9patriate wor,ers who do not have an$
constructive ;ualifications or s,ills. More than that> part of the s,ills ac;uired b$ soe
e9patriate wor,ers is actuall$ ac;uired through on5the5job5training after their arrival in
Oan. &here is therefore a genuine need to closel$ atch the labor ar,et
re;uireents with the outputs of educational and training progras.
/. Policies and &uture @ision of Emploment
&he polic$ of eplo$ent and the procedures ensued thereuponA offer an induceent
to the positive correlation between econoic growth and the growth in deand for
labor with the eergence of additional job opportunities that will provide new
openings in the local ar,et for earnest job5hunters. &he governent eplo$ent
polic$ began to shape up within the conte9t of successive five5Rear Developent !lans
which was first launched in 1.(6.
& he chapter on policies and procedures of econoic developent in the 0irst !lan and
under the sub5title T&rainingT considered training as one of the ost iportant
eleents of econoic developent and viewed huan resources as the basis for the
reali:ation of econoic progress.
&he plan pointed to a shortage in the suppl$ of trained Oani labor at that tie> and
stated that such shortage would intensif$ in severit$ with the growth in econoic
activit$ and the increase in deand for labor> unless the outputs of training progra
helped increase the suppl$ of Oani labor. &he plan gave priorit$ to training progras
in fields related to labor5intensive sectors.
&he second !lan 1.-151.-) accorded ore iportance to education> vocational
training and labor force and coprised ore detailed objectives and policies> which
)6
placed stress on advanceent of education and vocational training in line with the
e9igencies of the national econo$.
1owever> the ost stri,ing developent in governent polic$ of eplo$ent was
anifest in the third 0ive5Rear !lan 1.-651..2 and the 4th 0ive5Rear !lan 1..151..)>
whichT set huan resources developent in general> and developent of labor force in
particular as the ain objectives ofT the plan.
In the second half of the nineties> this polic$ was rested on the docuent of national
strateg$ for huan resources developent and the 0uture ?ision for OanFs econo$ 5
Oan %2%2. &he governent polic$ in this connection revolves around the following
two pivots=
1. Meet labor ar,et re;uireents for labor force in ters of ;uantit$ and ;ualit$.
%. #radicate uneplo$ent aong national labor force and strive to achieve alost full
eplo$ent.
&his iportant docuent included details> proposals and future goals related to
education> preparation and vocational training in ters of institutional and legal
fraewor,s as well as financial support given b$ the governent and the awareness
increasing progras ai at a,ing citi:ens change their attitudes towards hand wor,>
which is rather inferior in their view.
&he docuent also contained part of policies on eplo$ent in public and private
sectors with ephasis on oderni:ation and Oani:ation processes. &he ost
proinent feature of the docuent was the atter of raising the present direct cost of
the e9patriate wor,er to its actual level to the national econo$> and the e9pansion of
the social insurance ubrella to cover Oani wor,ers in various activities and sectors
including the inforal sectors> business owners and traditional craftsen. In view of
the iportance of Oani:ation> the proposed policies encopassed a nuber of
easures to accelerate its pace in various sectors.
&he fifth 0ive5$ear !lan @1..6S%222" and the si9th 0ive5Rear !lan @%2211%22)"
targeted the ;uantitative and ;ualitative indicators ebedded in the 0uture ?ision for
OanFs econo$ Oan %2%2 depicted in figure (56.
)(
igure A?-=& 5 0uture ?ision 5 Indicators of #plo$ent
+ource. Ministr$ of 7ational #cono$> )th 0ive5 Rear !lanT @1..)5%222" and the 6th
0ive5Rear !lan @%2215%22)"
&he eplo$ent objectives of the future ?ision during the period 1..)5 %2%2 can be
suari:ed as follows=
1. Increase Oani labor force suppl$ fro 1(G to )2G of the total population.
%. Increase woenFs participation fro 6G to 1%G of the total labor force
'. Increase Oani:ation percentage in the governent sector fro 6-G to .)G.
4. Increase Oani:ation percentage in the private sector fro 1)G to ()G.
/ccording to the projections of the 6th five5$ear plan @%2215%22)" soe 1''.(
thousand Oanis are envisaged to enter the labor ar,et and the deand for labor is
e9pected to increase b$ about 112 thousand job opportunities with the increase in
Oani:ation fro (1.'G to (4.-G in the governent sector and fro %%.)G to ''.)G
in the private sector during the period fro %222 to %22). &he plan also e9pected the
private sector to provide .%G of the new job opportunities.
It is ;uite natural that the increase in eplo$ent and Oani:ation across the board>
will depend on OanFs abilit$ to achieve high econoic growth rates and to introduce
steadfast refors to the econoic structure> in order to diversif$ its activit$ especiall$
b$ augenting the 6D! share ascribed to non5oil sectors such as agriculture> fisheries>
anufacturing> advanced services such as ban,ing> investent> telecounications>
inforation and touris.
It will e;uall$ depend on the degree of success gained in closel$ atching the labor
ar,et re;uireents with the outputs of the education s$ste and training progras.
)-
&o that e9tent> a restructuring of these s$ste and progras is needed to shift the focus
to ;ualit$ after long $ears of concentration of efforts on ;uantitative e9pansion.
0inall$> one of the ost iportant input paraeters to induce econoic
transforations that act as a stiulant to further job5creating econoic growthA is to
encourage the private sector to do an about5turn and spear head ris,5ta,ing initiatives
through engageent in bona fide productive activities and at the sae tie reodel
OanisF attitude towards wor, so that the$ becoe ore forthcoing with jobs the$
have down on> which have traditionall$ been occupied b$ e9patriate wor,ers.
II.Conclusion
Oan witnessedQ a nuber of iportant deographic developents in the last three
decades of the %2th centur$. &he total population reached %.4 illion in the $ear %222> i.e.
appro9iatel$ '.6 fold the population in 1.(2. &his increase was accopanied b$ a
decrease in average annual growth rate of the population fro 4.1 G in the eighties to
'.%G in the nineties> and it was also accopanied b$ a huge increase in the ratio of non5
Oani population fro 2.)G in 1.(2 to %6G in the $ear %222. /ppro9iatel$ -2G of the
population lives in four regionsA nael$= 6overnorate of Muscat> <atinah> +har;i$$a and
Da,hli$$a regions.
!opulation in the age5group less than 1) $ears account for ')G of the total populationA
&he high ratio of $oungsters to total population results in increased sustenance burden>
increased investent outla$s in social service sectors> decreased Oanis participation rate
in econoic activit$ and ore dependenc$ on e9patriate labor. &he ratio of non5Oanis to
total wor,ing population increased fro '%.%G in 1.(6 to ).G in the $ear %222.
Most of wor,ing Oanis are $oung $outh @).G under ') $ears"> with educational
achieveent hardl$ be$ond the secondar$ level @-'G". 4hile --G of wor,ing Oanis are
eplo$ed in paid jobs. &here are serious several initiatives to bring down this percentage
and increase the ratio of the self5eplo$ed and business owners> to ention but a few>
+anad project for the support of sall projects.
+erious attention to developing huan resources and Oani:ing jobs led to an increase in
the ratio of Oanis eplo$ed in the private sector fro %).'G in 1..2 to '2.(G in %222.
On the opposite side> the ratio of Oanis eplo$ed in the governent sector decreased
fro (4.(G to 6)G during the sae period. &his developent is lin,ed to the increase in
average annual growth rate of Oani labor eplo$ed in the private sector b$ three fold
the corresponding growth rate of Oan is eplo$ed in the governent sector during the
nineties. It is noted that the onthl$ salar$ range of public sector eplo$ees is higher than
the corresponding range of private sector eplo$ees and this e9plains wh$ Oanis are
highl$ intrigued b$ public eplo$ent. &he average onthl$ incoe of wor,ing Oani
an or woan was higher than the average onthl$ incoe of a corresponding
e9patriate.
).
/t a tie when OanFs dependence on e9patriate labor increased> .uneplo$ent aong
Oanis started to eerge> especiall$ aong new entrants to the labor ar,et. &he
uneplo$ent rate was estiated to be between 1'G and 14G in the $ear %222. It is
li,el$ that the nuber of uneplo$ed Oan is around 46 thousand individuals.
8neplo$ent rate is higher aong feales than ales> as the rate of uneplo$ed
woen stood at 1(G in the $ear %222 copared to 1%G for en.
&he discrepanc$ in the estiation of nubers of the uneplo$ed is partiall$ due to
differences over adopted definitions of uneplo$ent. 6enerall$> the higher estiates of
the uneplo$ent rate are associated with definitions that ebod$ high percentage of
voluntar$ uneplo$ent> as Oan is shrug off accepting available jobs at the prevailing
pa$ in the ar,et> or stop searching for paid eplo$ent or self eplo$ent out of
despair and frustration. 8neplo$ent is also attributed in part to self5iposed
restrictions on relocation to another place> particularl$ in case of woen. It is believed
that disguised uneplo$ent e9ists beside visible uneplo$ent> in both public and
private sectors.
Disguised uneplo$ent in the private sector sees to be attributed to the Oani:ation
drive that pushed private establishents into hiring ore Oanis erel$ to satisf$ the
Oani:ation ;uota re;uireents prescribed b$ foral creed as sine ;ua non condition for
eplo$ing e9patriates. &he ajorit$ of job see,ers are dropouts fro general educational
levels or general secondar$ level graduates. /s such> the$ are not professionall$ and
technicall$ ;ualified to wor,> render the helpless to erge into the labor ar,et.
Oan pursued an Oani:ation polic$ when the ratio of e9patriate labor reached alost
two thirds of the total labor force and the uneplo$ent rate aong Oanis widened
alaringl$. &he polic$ resulted in a noticeable decline in the percentage of e9patriates
eplo$ed in the governent sector fro 1-.%G in 1..2to ).)G in %222> i.e. little ore
than .2G of the e9patriate wor,ers are eplo$ed in the privateQ sector> especiall$ in trade
and service sectors.
4hile entrepreneurs defend their iense and increasing dependence on e9patriate labor
on the grounds of lower costs> longer wor,ing hours and willingness to ta,e up jobs
shrugged off b$ Oan is> but the growth in the deand for e9patriate at a rate e9ceeding
double the rate of the growth in the 6D! during the nineties> iplies highl$ e9cessive
procureent of foreign labor and casts doubt on the econoic viabilit$ claied b$
business owners.
&he Oani:ation polic$ encounters a nuber of obstacles. &hese include high turnover
rate of Oani staff in the private sector as the$ continuall$ see, to shift to the governent
sector> claied inefficienc$ and low productivit$ and unwillingness to wor, longer hours
for a lower wage as the case with e9patriates. &his has irrefutable ipact on the
copetitiveness of Oani products and OanFs aspirations to increasingl$ integrate with
the global econo$. &he polic$ also faces difficulties arising fro the influence of
e9patriates who control the decision5a,ing process in the private sector.
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In addition> there are obstacles related to the presence of e9ploitable opportunities for
soe Oanis to earn one$ via trading in visas> sponsorship fees> surrogate erchandr$
and parasite and invisible earnings. /t an$ rate> Oan will continue depending upon
certain percentage of e9patriate labor> as the uneplo$ed Oanis represent. onl$Q 16G of
the total e9patriate labor.Q 1owever> the 0uture ?ision for OanFs #cono$ Oan %2%2
ais at bringing down the percentage of e9patriate labor fro '%G to )G in the
governent sector and fro -)G to %)G in the private sector during the period fro 1..)
to %2%2.
&he difficulties of providing job opportunities for Oanis will e9acerbate particularl$
with the increase in the rate of participation of Oanis in econoic activit$> in general>
and increased woenFs participation in the labor force in particular.
&his situation calls for enhanceent of efforts aied at increasing savings> investent and
econoic growth rates> together with the augentation of 6D! share of non5oil sectors
and restructuring of the education and training sector to upgrade the s,ills of the Oani
labor force and conse;uentl$ iprove its copetenc$ and copetitiveness in the labor
ar,et. It is iportant to lin, these efforts with ajor reodeling of Oan isF attitudes
towards wor, and entitleent to pa$ent in return for wor,Q carried out. &his re;uires
activation of policies aied at aligning frae of inds with productive activit$.
61