The ministry is preparing an executive regulation for the Cabinet Decision No. 19 of July 19, 2005, on the classification of companies to specify nationalisation percentages and to work out implementation mechanism for companies' nationalisation programmes, revealed Humaid bin Dimas, Assistant Under-Secretary for Labour Sector.

The percentage stipulation will be applicable on companies whose sectors were not governed by an earlier Cabinet Decision which stipulated certain annual ratios for nationalisation such as the banking and insurance sectors.

Bin Dimas was responding to enquiries made by companies regarding the nationalisation ratio for classification of companies by the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs. A number of company representatives, who were willing to be classified under category A to avoid paying double the fees and to receive other facilities announced by the ministry, enquired about the percentage ratio of nationalisation to be met by their companies.

The cabinet decision No. 19 of 19 July, 2005, had made the classification of companies regarding diversification of culture stipulation clear as it had specified that companies under A category are those which have 30 per cent or less of their total number of workers from the same nationality, companies under B would be those which have between 31 to 74 per cent of their workers from the same nationality, and companies under C category are those which have more than 75 per cent of their workers from the same nationality.

The same decision, which put the conditions of meeting nationalisation rates as well, did not, however, include specific percentage ratios according to which a company would be classified under category A, B, or C.

In an earlier statement, the ministry's Under-Secretary for Planning and Manpower had said banks and insurance companies should meet the ratios specified to them by earlier Cabinet Decisions. He observed that companies, which are not governed by such decisions, should maintain a minimum of two per cent nationalisation rate without specifying the required rates for each of the three categories.

"Apart from clarifying the nationalisation rule, specifying ratios for the categorisation of companies under this particular stipulation will prompt companies to seriously work towards offering jobs to nationals," Bin Dimas said, adding that companies will not be upgraded to a higher category before the lapse of six months from appointing nationals.