TAG | nursing jobs saudi arabia
Some of the best nursing jobs are overseas. Other countries are experiencing severe shortage of nurses. Countries such as Australia, UK, USA and Saudi Arabia present great opportunities for nurses to work abroad. Right now, Saudi Arabia is the premiere job destination for nurses looking for work abroad. Apart from Saudi Arabia’s dynamic business sector, the medical field is also growing. Many hospitals and health clinics are being established and inaugurated in order to take care of the sick and elderly. To meet the ever increasing demands, the Saudi Arabian government has set up a policy for hiring nurses from overseas to fill in vacant positions. Nursing in Saudi Arabia offers one of the highest tax-free salary packages with 5 to 8 weeks of paid vacation, free housing, free transportation and a lot more.
Many people from the Third World countries travel to Saudi Arabia and work as nurses because the base salary is really much higher than what they get back home. They can pay five to seven times the annual salary nurses earn in their country of origin. But this is not true for Westerners who get almost the same or even higher salaries in their own countries. But they still choose to work in Saudi Arabia for the longer paid vacation. The opportunity to take a vacation and travel is a huge factor why Westerners work as nurses in Saudi Arabia.
There are many positive sides for working as a nurse in Saudi Arabia. Aside from the tax free salary, you may also enjoy these extra benefits:
Pay Range: Average yearly salary is 30,000 to 40,000 USD and is 100 % tax free plus free housing, free transportation and full one month leave in a single working year. There is overtime for working extra hours in some organizations.
Housing: Some hospitals or employers offer house rent allowance even free accommodation for some. You may want to check with the employer or recruitment agency first. The apartments or living quarters are open for twin sharing basis only. There is no chance you are allowed to bring along or live with any family member. Most hospitals are situated in compounds so generally the apartments are very near your place of work. By the way, the living quarters are fully-furnished and the compounds are equipped with their own gym, canteen, swimming pool and bank.
Working Hours: Forty-eight hours work per week is considered regular and minimum especially in shifting duties. The shifts last 8 to 12 per day depending upon work load and staffing. Most hospitals offer overtime pay but you may want to check this out with your agency or employer.
Paid Vacation and Holidays: Nurses can avail of a forty-five day annual paid vacation with a round-trip air ticket to your home country even after only ten months. Some employers offer paid sick leaves and paid holidays.
Others: Free medical or health insurance, uniform, transportation or shuttle service, bonus upon completion of contract, travel allowance and travel tax incentives, and cell phone.
These are just some of the perks and benefits of nurses working in Saudi Arabia. Nursing in Saudi Arabia varies from one hospital to another. You may want to check first with your agency or employer before signing any contract.
There is a great demand for the services of a registered nursed in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Nurses from Asian countries, North America, Europe, Australia and New Zealand are recruited and hired for various nursing jobs in Saudi Arabia. The demand is due to the ever increasing foreign working population in Saudi Arabia in top of its own population growth.
Nurses looking for advancement in career, new clinical and hospital experiences change in the working atmosphere and better pay are gravitating towards nursing jobs in Saudi Arabia. Recruiting agencies abound looking for health workers, registered nurses especially.
There is always a need for registered nurses in the labor and delivery department, maternity and obstetrics, medical and surgical departments, operating room, endoscopy, pediatrics, ICU (intensive care unit) Emergency Room and radiology. Aside from being a registered nurse, she should have a t least two years of post graduate experience.
For heads of departments such as PICU, NICU, maternity nursery and cath lab, the RN should have at least an 8-year experience related to the department inclusive of at least 3 years experience of being a head nurse. A western education or its equivalent is desired and a certification and registration from a Nursing Council or State board exams.
There are plenty of agencies recruiting registered nurses for a job in Saudi Arabia. It is important to do due diligence when applying for a nursing job in Saudi Arabia. There are plenty of local and international recruiters out there and not all of them are legitimate. A lot of horror “recruiting “stories abound so be very careful.
When looking for an accredited nurse recruiting agency you could ask fellow nurse for reputable one s that they know. Your basic healthcare recruiting agency should have at least some years of experience in its resume and a list of happy RNs enjoying their work abroad. Do not settle for a new recruitment agency that has no track record. It is better for you to pay a slightly higher placement fee to a reputable agency than paying a tad smaller to a dubious agency.
To start your application you need to prepare the following for personal or online submission. First, a personal interview is favorable. If this is not feasible, then a phone interview would have to suffice. You need to submit one to two referrals with your online application and application assessment. The agency also requires that you submit a current health record with the latest results of your physical examination. These requirements are on top of your resume.
Healthcare recruitment agencies offer different packages for their clients. The agency’s main job is to secure a favorable working condition and contract and good salary for you. In a nutshell, the health facilities and hospitals are the clients of the agency and you are the service provider. Packages are almost always inclusive of very lucrative salaries, housing accommodation, and shuttle to and from work, annual round-trip tickets to county of origin, and a bonus upon the completion of a 2-year contract.
There are plenty of opportunities for health service providers in Saudi Arabia. The most in-demand health related job in this country is nursing. Registered nurses from all over the world are opting to relocate in Saudi Arabia because of the wide range of opportunities open for a registered nurse. Saudi Arabia hospitals always have positions open for: head nurses, staff nurses, ICU staff nurses, charge nurses. There are also opportunities to work in the training aspect of the trade for positions like: nursing Instructor, nursing educator, nursing officers, quality assurance nurse and director of nursing.
Contrary to belief, nursing salaries in Saudi Arabia are not in the high US$ 50,000. As in hospitals all over the world, pay is based on the RN’s years of experience and field of expertise. The normal salary range runs in the $500 to $5000 a month, according to some sources. The big difference is largely due to the country of origin, the experience of the employee, the hospital who employed you and the agency who recruited you.
There are a lot of benefits that is attached to your contract as an RN in Saudi Arabia. For one, your salary is tax free. You would not have to pay anything to the local government. You are provided with free housing-fully furnished, paid vacations of 4 to 10 weeks, a roundtrip ticket to your point of entry. You are also presented with an opportunity to travel and work in an outstanding tertiary hospital. There are very minimal upkeep fees as even utility bills are paid for by the hospital.
Hospitals in Saudi Arabia are humongous. It is not an unusual thing to get lost in the vast complex. Even seasoned staff do get lost in the labyrinth of corridors. It is imperative that you know your way around the hospital for your own safety. It is best to get a job in a privately owned hospital than a ministry-run hospital.
There is some truth to the fact that Caucasians, especially North Americans, are given higher nursing salaries in Saudi Arabia. Asians and South Africans are paid less even if they do the same work as the Caucasians. The basis for nursing salaries in Saudi Arabia is dependent on the basic pay for an RN in her country. Suffice to say that even if the Asians and South Africans are paid less, their take home pay in a Saudi hospital is still greater than what they will normally earn back home. The Americans are actually not “tax-less” as they have to pay their taxes once they land in US soil.
Work contracts in Saudi Arabia are usually single status – family is not included. This may be because of the housing arrangement provided by the hospital. In a nutshell, nursing salaries in Saudi Arabia are more than acceptable because of the low cost of living, no taxes paid to the local government, paid vacations, bonuses and perks and the opportunity to travel to neighboring countries.
