A recent Bayt.com "Top Industries in the Middle East and North Africa" survey conducted by Bayt.com, the Middle East’s number one job site, and YouGov, a research and consulting organization, has shown that respondents in KSA consider the oil, gas and petrochemicals industry to be the most preferable for employment. Government careers are also thought of highly and are most attractive to local talent, while women are predominantly interested in health-related careers.
In KSA,46% of employed respondents are satisfied with the salary package in their current industry, while48% are satisfied with their ability to maintain a good work-life balance. They are also generally content with the potential for career growth (with37% being satisfied); job security (47%); working hours (59%); and training and development opportunities (34%).48% are happy with their current work culture, which shows that the KSA work environment is a happy one.
The best salary packages in KSA are perceived to be in the oil, gas and petrochemicals industry (54%); though banking and finance careers are also seen to pay well, according to29%. Government jobs are seen as being the best for maintaining a good work-life balance (33%), followed by oil, gas and petrochemicals (29%) and banking and finance (26%). Oil, gas and petrochemicals offers the best potential for career growth according to the majority of respondents (45%), with banking and finance coming second (28%). The highest levels of job security are seen to be in government positions (41%), though there is also a perceived high degree of security in oil, gas and petrochemicals (39%); military, defense, police and security services (18%), and banking and finance (18%).
Respondents believe that the most stressful industries are construction (28%), banking and finance (19%), and oil, gas and petrochemicals (18%). Construction is also considered to have the longest working hours, by a third of respondents (33%).
Suhail Masri, VP of Sales, Bayt.com, said: “It’s easier than ever before to find jobs in different industries. On Bayt.com we currently have an average of10,000 vacancies every day across industries, job roles, and career levels. In addition to posted jobs, there is a universe of hidden jobs, where employers fill thousands of unadvertised vacancies using the Bayt.com CV Search leading technology. Besides posting their CVs, Bayt.com professionals can now showcase their skills, merits and interests on the Bayt.com Specialties platform which supports a constant career dialogue and a wealth of opportunity to be recognized by potential employers, clients and peers in the industry. There are over80,000 specialties on Bayt.com Specialties today growing rapidly due to the popularity and depth of Bayt.com's unique new value proposition and we see this new realm for career advancement as the new frontier of recruitment and certainly the definition of where the vanguard of the online recruitment business is today."
Women in KSA are most attracted to healthcare, medical services and pharmaceuticals according to51% of respondents, followed by education and academia (48%), and banking and finance (26%). Local talent is seen to be drawn predominantly to government, civil service and utilities jobs (33%), oil, gas and petrochemicals (31%) and banking and finance (28%).
In the past year, respondents believe that the oil, gas and petrochemicals industry has seen the strongest growth (40%), followed by construction (22%), and IT, electronics and telecommunications (21%).
According to63% of KSA respondents, the government is a favorable employer. A quarter of KSA respondents (25%) have changed the industry they work in in the last24 months, with55% considering an industry change in the next few years. Oil, gas and petrochemicals is the industry of choice for20%, though IT, electronics and telecommunications (10%) jobs are also popular. The top reasons for career changes are perceived better salaries (75%), career growth opportunities (47%), and better benefits (30%).
Sundip Chahal, CEO, YouGov, said: “Within KSA, it is very clear which industry is the most preferable, though interestingly the majority of regional respondents are keen to find employment in the IT, electronics and telecommunications industry rather than in oil, gas and petrochemicals.”
Data for the Bayt.com “Top Industries in the Middle East and North Africa” survey was collected online from November18-25,2013, with7,370 respondents aged18+, representing Algeria, Bahrain, Egypt, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Morocco, Oman, Pakistan, Qatar, KSA, Syria, Tunisia, and the UAE.