Arab News reports that an increasing number of Saudi youths (male) are finding that it doesn’t kill them to work in other than top-management positions. Being a ‘barista’ has its appeal, including a salary, it appears. I’m a bit surprised that this is being reported now. Back in 2005, the last time I went to a Starbucks in the Kingdom, a young Saudi took and prepared my order. Perhaps large numbers of Saudis are finding the job attractive and pushing out the foreign workers from the job slot…
Working in coffee shops proving attractive to young Saudis
MUHAMMAD AL-SULAMI | ARAB NEWSJEDDAH: Coffee kiosks around the streets of Jeddah have attracted a number of Saudi youths who have started joining a field of work previously dominated by foreigners. They even excel in preparing coffee and serving customers.
The new phenomenon, which is fast spreading, has brought happiness to citizens who are keen to see Saudi youths shouldering responsibility and beginning work at an early age.
Abdul Aziz Al-Ghamdi, a young Saudi who joined one of these coffee shops, said he did not want to depend on his father for his daily expenses, so he approached one of the coffee shop companies and asked to be employed.
“The company welcomed me warmly and trained me on methods of making various types of coffee,” he told Arab News.
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Perhaps it’s just in time, too. Arab News also reports:
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March:06:2010 - 10:10
It is a few years late, most of my uncles worked during their university education years in menial jobs after hours and during summers, and my younger brother, cousins, and their friends all worked at jobs here and there, even at starbucks… but they never gave me free coffee.
March:06:2010 - 10:22
I should note, too, that there seems to be a big difference in attitude between Saudi Sunnis and Saudi Shi’a.
March:06:2010 - 12:35
John, where did you see that information (reg. Sunnis & Shias) ? I’m really interested to read it.
March:06:2010 - 15:48
Personal experience…
At the US Consulate General in Dhahran (in the Eastern Province, home of the majority of Saudi Shi’a), we had Saudi employees in manual labor positions–gardeners, maintenance, etc–all of whom were Shi’a. There were one, perhaps two Sunnis at the Consulate in Jeddah and Embassy in Riyadh, combined, in specialist-only jobs. None would take ‘menial’ jobs, leaving that to third-country nationals from Sudan, Pakistan, etc. That was the case in 1981; it remained the case in 2003. I’ve no reason to think that it’s not still the case.
March:06:2010 - 22:02
It is still the case. Not only that, these Third world workers are badly exploited and abused. Their passports are illegally confiscated by the employers, they are given lower salaries than agreed upon, they are made to work in jobs other than appointed for, women are held hostage and raped, male drivers are forced to have sexual relations with their female employers – you name it and they indulge in that kind of malpractice.
I think it is because the days of oil-boom are clearly over now. With Saudi Arabia gaining less and less money, they have to take up these kinds of jobs.
March:07:2010 - 00:27
John, I think the “new phenomenon” being described is Sunni’s (there aren’t many Shia in Jeddah). The article also only refers to Jeddah- so maybe it’s a Jeddah thing, not a national thing. But I certainly see young Saudi’s working, and I never used to. They do like to work in coffee shops and many grocery stores have Saudi cashiers as well and I noticed at STC there were all young Saudi’s working- though that wasn’t quite menial labor- but they weren’t all managers!
March:07:2010 - 01:33
You can notice it in Riyadh as well, I’v met a number of people who worked at nights while studying from Riyadh to jobs that will pay them about 1500 sar a month. Some of them work in gaming cafes or coffee shops.. some in computer shops.. etc.
Also Kudu is a fast food chain in Saudi that has a really high Saudi employees rates as cooks and staff. I know a couple of branches where only Saudis are working there. McDonalds also increased the number of their Saudi employees in some regions. While if I remember correctly, a fast food place in Dahran called Dajin only had Saudi Staff as policy.
March:07:2010 - 01:54
Like everyone said, this isn’t new. Many of my young cousins have worked in the fast food industry at some point. And it’s not restricted to one city. I’ve seen Saudi fast food workers and supermarket cashiers in Jeddah, Mecca, Riyadh, Medina and Taif. I’m sure there are more.
March:07:2010 - 03:49
Ah yes. Computer and video game shops as well. See a lot of them there.
March:07:2010 - 07:50
Thanks. I was a bit puzzled by the story: why now?
March:07:2010 - 10:02
I think economic concerns and some jobs are being “Saudized” as well. I’m pretty sure checkout people at grocery stores- although some stores manage to avoid it. Also, for some reason, some jobs like coffee barista and video games seems to be a bit “cool”- so if you need money and can be “cool” -why not? I think some of the clothing stores have a touch of “cool” as well.
Sometimes it’s the family. I know young Saudi men who’ve had to move boxes in warehouses, work as waiters or volunteer in hospitals as “charactar building” experiences.- but those families have probably always been that way and don’t account for the new surge.
March:08:2010 - 09:34
Re the video games stores. Most of these are owned (and run) by Saudi youth. Which is why most of them are manned by them.
March:08:2010 - 12:41
Family owned, or family-supported youth/woman ownership of businesses is a good way to provide work, career, and business experience for groups who are often disenfranchized. Doing menial jobs within the business is part of the traditional apprenticeship model.