I am the owner-manager of a consultancy firm that has been operating for the last twenty eight months, refer to various inputs on Omanisation including my English FM Oman Radio Interview in same Forum last week.

On Monday 14th May, 2001 4 of my Omani Staff decided to resign enmasse (together). For the last 2 years since we had started operations, my staff were regularly paid their salaries, with exception of delay 2 or 3 times of a maximum of only one month, as a new venture and the market is highly polarised and still difficult to penetrate and with many family businesses in Oman owning their own respective consultancies - we end up getting only the spill-over businesses or when the W thing would work - which is only in a very few cases only.

One Omani staff (boy) is the only one left, with 2 expatriates still on board. 3 girls (married) and one single left enmasse.

I cannot blame my Omani Staff, because they have not got their salaries. what hurts more is the way they left, and though I had asked them to hand over to the remaining staff, they did not do so. they did not even have the courtsey to return the office and drawer keys.

We hit the low spell in businesses, compounded by the delay in receiving payments from our customers with completed works already done, otherwise we should not be in trouble (the big chain of company is already being sued by us in Commercial Court, and all of our staff know this already - besides I believe in being honest, sincere, genuine and transaprent in dealings with them - which seems to have backfired!.

What was hurtful more is the insistence to be given Post Dated Cheques for their remaining salaries (personal guarantee letter was not enough!), with one even indicating 'we stopped our husbands to go and complain to the Ministry of Labour'.

Three of the Staff were first time employed by the firm after finishing business college and staying home for more than 2 years, before they got any employment. I personally made sure they were trained on the job in all the job aspects of the firm, with full responsibilty and empowerment.

one of the girls left for our competitor, taking all the marketing and Business secrets with her! (plus the embarrassment of spoiling our name that they did not get their salaries, to be passed on to our potential customers (they tell us!).

The question is this - is this the way Omanisation is going to work in Oman?,

I regret throwing away my life and career in PDO trying to help and defend Omanisation.

Et tu Brute???.

Regards,

MagicMan.

Well Magic Man..
you do what you have to do, if this is the attitude they have then the hell with it!! as for me i works in a engineering consultancy company which was dealing with PDO for 6 months.. i liked the job alot!! i was not paid well as i have my HND is hand and was paid as someone who graduated from high-school!! plus long hours of work!! i was stressed at the end!!
i have resigned coz i got a better offer in a better company, but befor leaving I made sure that i followed the rules, gave a month notice, i even trained the lady who was going to take my place although it was not my duty to do so.. but still why not.. after all we are working in our country isent it!! as for those Omanis.. you can not stop them from what ever they are saying!! its just you could feel sorry that such people exists.. Don’t blame your self.. you didn’t do anything wrong.. its just the problem with them!

Dear Someone1,


Actually what is hurting more is that when I told them when the firm will be having businesses again, I may ask them to join is when they said they got jobs already and although the salaries are quite low compared to us, they PREFER there because the salaries are regular, and they can get loans from banks.

I fully appreciate that they did try to stay, as far as they could, though, to be very fair to them too.

But I am hurting as I personally feel responsible to have let them down (though not at fault not to get business).

I would have preferred they only left in a nicer and better way, and not burn the bridges behind them.

Are you now employed?? If not, snd your fax to our associates Fax No. 597633 - Tel. 503676 - Centre For Human Resources Services.

All the best wishes.

Regards,

MagicMan.

loOlz Magic Man..
you made me loOl.. anyways thanks for your offer but im already working for a petroluem company.. :)
Infact im posting from work since i have a break now!
Working here is really nice.. its something new to me.. coz i had graduated as a computer engineer, and im working in the MIS deprtment! i tried with PDO b4 but didnt get excepted!! :( but all to the bset inshllah!

Originally posted by MagicMan
I may ask them to join is when they said they got jobs already and although the salaries are quite low compared to us, they PREFER there because the salaries are regular, and they can get loans from banks.



i Dont get it they left to a place where they are paid less salary??? how come???

One took a drop from OMR 350/- gross to OMR 160/=.

This is really silly, even if the salary is regular. The irony is even if there is business now, the next employees will suffer, as we shall go also market-wise to save some moneys too.

[Edited by MagicMan on 05-17-2001 at 01:36 PM]

Why did they leave the company then?? ya3ni they thought that they didnt gain any expreance from your company or what?

as i understod .. that the system in magicman's business is whenever there is a counsaltant case .. the workers get the money .. maybe a percentage of it ..
the people preffered lower salariies than this type of compensatiion . ( please correct me MagicMan if I am wrong )
actually I find your kind of wages intresting it makes people challange.. though it is nice to have a constant wage in order to gain security .. I give you a hint .. why dont you decide of a small basic salary for each month .. and them extra on it is the percentage that they will earn .. maybe reduce the percentage but at leats they can be sure at the end of the month they can get money to pay some of thier bills ..
By the way Magic man .. I want to gain from your experience in human resource a bit .. I am planning to do a project for my final year in Human Resource . .. wanna know if you have any intresting topic taht I do and taht I can get information about easily .. because if I did not find information about Oman .. I will endup maybe doing it about the country I am studying in and I dont find that intresting .. I was planning to do about Omanization and its effectivness .. but I guess getting in hold of these information is quite hard especialy the rate of unemplyment and the polices of omanization .. can please give me your advice

Dear Arbprnces,

The salaries are top priority to be paid as soon as money comes in, sometimes I use my pension salary to pay the Juniorer Staff first!

On HR, my advice to you is to find another subject to Omanisation, as many peoples have written on that subject from different approaches and angles.

Even the Universities are now not accepting this subject as a thesis/dissertation, at least the UK ones. I have no idea on the USA ones, if you are doing one in USA, then you may consider doing that, if you wish, though it can be very tough indeed, as you need a lot of data and inputs.

Instead of continuing in a public forum, drop me an E-Mail note, and we can discuss more!!.

Best regards,

MagicMan.