HR salaries review

Petition for the Establishment of a National Salary Benchmark to Combat Wage Disparity

To: The Honorable Minister of Labor, Ministry of Labor, State of Qatar

Cc: Qatar Chamber of Commerce & Industry; Qatar Financial Centre

From: Concerned Human Resources Professionals across Qatar.

Date: 24/09/2025

Subject: Petition to Address Salary Package Abuse and Establish a Sector-Specific Salary Benchmark

Your Excellency,

We, the undersigned Human Resources professionals operating within the State of Qatar, write to you today with a shared sense of responsibility and a commitment to fostering a fair and competitive labor market. We wish to express our full support for the State’s visionary reforms in labor laws, particularly the abolition of the No-Objection Certificate (NOC) and the introduction of a non-discriminatory minimum wage. These landmark changes have significantly enhanced Qatar's international standing and protected the rights of workers.

However, a critical challenge persists that undermines these efforts and creates an unlevel playing field: the widespread abuse of salary packages for certain professional domains.

While minimum wage laws protect entry-level and lower-wage workers, mid-level professional roles in specific sectors suffer from extreme and unjustified salary disparities for individuals with similar qualifications, experience, and job responsibilities. This practice, often referred to as "salary package abuse," leads to several negative consequences:

1. Unfair Competition for Talent: Companies that offer equitable, market-driven salaries are unfairly disadvantaged against those that exploit the lack of transparency to offer significantly lower packages.

2. High Employee Turnover: Skilled professionals who discover significant pay gaps for comparable roles become demotivated and seek employment elsewhere, leading to instability and increased recruitment costs for businesses.

3. Damage to Qatar’s Reputation: As a global hub, Qatar must be perceived as a destination that values and rewards talent fairly. Salary abuse tarnishes this image and hinders our ability to attract and retain the world-class expertise necessary for continued national growth.

4. Inequity and Demotivation: Paying individuals from different nationalities or backgrounds vastly different salaries for the same work is fundamentally unjust and creates a toxic work environment, contrary to the spirit of Qatar’s labor reforms.

Our Proposed Solution: A National Salary Benchmark

To address this issue effectively and build upon the progress already made, we respectfully petition the Ministry of Labor to consider the development and publication of an official, non-binding Salary Benchmark Guide for key professional domains.

This benchmark would serve as a critical reference point for both employers and employees, promoting transparency and fairness without imposing rigid government controls on salaries. We suggest it could include:

· Identified Abused Domains: Focus initially on sectors where disparity is most acute, such as:

  · Hospitality & Tourism

  · Retail & Sales

  · Administration & Executive Support

  · Marketing & Communications

  · Mid-level Engineering Specializations

  · Information Technology Support

· Data-Driven Ranges: For each domain, provide a salary range based on factors like:

  · Years of relevant experience.

  · Specific qualifications and certifications.

  · Job complexity and level of responsibility.

· Regular Updates: The benchmark should be reviewed and updated annually to reflect economic conditions and market trends.

Benefits of a Salary Benchmark:

· Empowers Employers: Provides HR departments and business leaders with credible data to justify fair salary budgets internally.

· Protects Employees: Gives professionals a transparent standard to assess the fairness of an offer and negotiate confidently.

· Promotes Market Stability: Creates a more predictable and stable labor market, reducing costly turnover.

· Enhances National Competitiveness: Positions Qatar as a leader in fair labor practices, attracting higher-quality talent.

We believe that such an initiative would be a natural and powerful next step in Qatar's journey toward a modern and equitable labor market. It aligns perfectly with the goals of the Qatar National Vision 2030, particularly the Human Development pillar, by ensuring a dignified and motivating work environment for all.

We are eager to offer our collective expertise and support to the Ministry in developing this vital resource. We are ready to collaborate on data collection, industry insights, and pilot programs.

Thank you for your time and consideration of this important matter. We look forward to your positive response.

Respectfully,

Human Resources Professionals across Qatar.

Human Resources Professionals across Qatar.    Contact the author of the petition