Analysis of Expatriate Workforce in Saudi Arabia's Healthcare Sector

This report provides an analysis of the expatriate workforce within Saudi Arabia's healthcare sector. It explores the advantages of having a multinational workforce, such as diverse perspectives, which can lead to innovative ideas. The report acknowledges the challenges, including the steep learning curve associated with dealing with patients from different cultures. It also discusses the financial aspects, such as free healthcare for expatriates and the impact of expat fees on staffing. The report concludes that the presence of foreign nationals and expatriates positively impacts the operations and services offered in the Saudi Arabian healthcare sector, contributing to its overall effectiveness and ability to attract and retain skilled foreign labor. The report references several academic sources to support its findings.

Expatriate Considerations

EXPATRIATE
Expatriates
It is observed that in Saudi Arabia healthcare, the employees are comprised of the foreign
nationals and expatriates. Therefore, in this paper the discussion will be made on the concept of
“expatriates”. In reference to this there are various pros and cons related to multinational
workforce. One of the advantages is concerned with “different perspectives”. The individuals
have different perspective, which helps the company to consider more innovative ideas. It is one
of the best chances for the healthcare sector to gather new ideas and ways to manage the
activities in an effective manner (Alkhamis, Cosgrove, Mohamed & Hassan, 2017).
But the con in relation to this is concerned with “steep learning curve”. At the time of
dealing with the patients from other cultures or countries, the workforce has to face the challenge
in convincing the patients. The expatriates face the challenge in solving the queries and issues of
the patients (Alharbi, Gelaidan, Al-Swidi & Saeed, 2016).
Also, the current system supports the expenditure of the expatriates. The healthcare in the
Saudi Arabia is free for the Saudi citizens and also for expatriates who are working in the public
and private sector. They can avail the services for free and it directly impacts the retention power
of the employees in the highly competitive market. By having support from the government it is
easy for them to take care of their health as the services which are offered are free of cost for
them (Williamson & Wan, 2018).
Yes, also the fees concerned with expatriates prevent the healthcare organizations to
attract the foreigners to fill the staffing positions. The cost incurred on them is high and it
prevents the companies to appoint the foreigners. But it has been stated that the expat fee
emphasizes on boosting the jobs in Saudi and it reduces the wide gap between the costs of
appointing the Saudis and expats in the private sector. This initiative is considered to attract and
retain the skilled foreign labors with the high qualifications. Therefore, it can be stated that this
strategy considered by the government helped in attracting the foreigners to fill staffing positions
in the competitive market (Rozkwitalska, Sułkowski & Magala, 2016). So, Saudi Arabia’s
healthcare workforce that comprises of foreign nationals and expatriate has positively impacted
the entire operations of the healthcare sector and it has positively impacted the services which
are offered to the customers.

EXPATRIATE
References
Alharbi, J., Gelaidan, H., Al-Swidi, A., & Saeed, A. (2016). Control mechanisms employed
between headquarters and subsidiaries in Multinational Enterprises (MNEs) An empirical
study. Review of International Business and Strategy, 26(4), 493-516.
Alkhamis, A., Cosgrove, P., Mohamed, G., & Hassan, A. (2017). The personal and workplace
characteristics of uninsured expatriate males in Saudi Arabia. BMC health services
research, 17(1), 56.
Rozkwitalska, M., Sułkowski, Ł., & Magala, S. (Eds.). (2016). Intercultural interactions in the
multicultural workplace: traditional and positive organizational scholarship. Springer.
Williamson, P., & Wan, F. (2018). Emerging market multinationals and the concept of
ownership advantages. International Journal of Emerging Markets, 13(3), 557-567.