Pkingston

Does the Riyadh opportunity note any annual bonus potential? NEOM says that a bonus of up to 30% of salary may be paid per annum.
Also, NEOM provides full healthcare, savings plan, school fees (if you need), monthly travel allowance within KSA, and food, laundry, housekeeping provided.

Taurus85

Both opportunities offer:

• Annual service gratuity, which I guess is the bonus.
• Healthcare
• SR17k in annual travel allowance
• I am single and have no one to look after but myself.

ZeroCool_HTP

The annual bonus is up to 50% of basic salary, subject to performance review.

Pkingston

Oh, in that case, even better!

thorshammer

On the career page, it specifically says 20-30%, but you're saying we can get up to 50%? If so, that's really awesome!

Pkingston

Yeh, thats what i thought too. And was confirmed by HR when i queried it...
Anyway - ill soon find out.

ZeroCool_HTP

It was up to 50, i think they reduced it, then people werent happy so they put it back to 50. However, if it can change once, they can change it again in the future.

thorshammer

In addition, is there an annual raise of 3% from the base I think I read that on another post?

ZeroCool_HTP

I think 3% is the max, but it depends on performance too, i think!

nonthaburi

Choose Riyadh every time. It's not always about the money, and whatever the deal with bonuses etc, presumably both deals are okay for you. Quality of life will be so much better. Social life will be so much better. Things to do will be so much better. Going out will be so much better. Choice of restaurants, coffee shops, bars, nightlife, women etc will be so much better. You get the idea..... Unless you want to live in a village... Have a look at Riyadh Front, The Boulevard, or the Zone on Takhasussi to get an idea of Riyadh life. There must be countless videos on SC, IG, YT etc
You will also have easier access to the rest of the world via Riyadh Airport. Don't underestimate possible connection times to Neom through Riyadh, and the extra cost on the ticket. I live about three hours away from Riyadh. Since COVID the regional airport has pretty much stopped all international flights so it means going to Riyadh every time I want to go somewhere. That's a flight that may have a long layover and probably require a change of airline, or a drive. It's a pain in the ass. And even more of a pain on the way back when you're knackered and you've got to be at work the next day.

I don't live in Neom, but I have spent ten years in KSA, done similar set-ups, and I'm familiar with the country.

Can't say about your salary because I don't know what you do but 40k a month is fine considering your outgoings.

You will need a local license. It used to be the case that you simply got your UK license translated and stamped, and then you just exchanged it for a Saudi one without doing any test. You will be taken to some backroom clinic somewhere to do a medical for 100 SAR or similar. Be prepared to spend a morning at the driving centre because of the number of people. It may be better now though, and in smaller cities less people and so on. When you pay for your Saudi license you have the choice to select how many years it's valid for up to ten years.

Buying a car is easy and very quick. Best to go with a local if you're buying second hand. There are loads of dealers along Khurais Road around Exit 27-28 ish as you're going east. You can't miss them. The dealer will do the transfer of ownership for you. It's all done online and is quick and easy.

Personally I'd rent for a while when you first arrive to get the feel of the country. No point shelling out when you might hate it. Expect to pay 1-2000 a month for some Japcrap, depending on the vehicle. 3k a month for something nicer. 500 a month on fuel will cover your running around. Full insurance is included so that's something you don't have to worry about if you do have a fender bender.

1 bedroom apartment maybe 80-120k a year in a compound. May be more, may be less, but it's a ballpark figure. It's a fair chunk of change from your salary, but you're not just paying for a place to live, you're paying for a life, access to other people, facilities, social life etc. Bills will be included. Some compounds have a better social scene than others, some are more Arab orientated than others. It's worth staying in a serviced apartment when you arrive for a few months or so to give you time to look around at different places when you have boots on the ground. Presumably you'll be mixing with other Westerners at work so they'll be able to give you some pointers.

Best to speak to compound management about payment. Shouldn't have to pay for a year upfront these days. Half yearly or quarterly should be doable. A lot of expats have left the past few years and there are more vacancies. Saudi is also a lot more open then it used to be so many people don't feel the need to stay in a compound any more. I've lived on compound, off compound, and on military bases. They all have pros and cons.

Good luck with your move whatever you decide.

Alex23

Just arrived last week in NC2.
For those previously asking about the bus connection with NC1, in the morning is faster around 30mins and evening 45 mins. Adding the walks around NC1 to office and in NC2 it totals a 2 hours commuting time. From another perspective this is 25% of the working day thus the 25% salary increase.

Tekdxb

Hello All!

Great forum - very glad my wife and I found it as we have been in touch in regards to Neom since End of December 2021 and as many of you already mentioned, things are a little bit slow. but hey, its sort of a start-up and things surely will improve. i consider the employees who are there and are currently being hired are the pioneers :-)
apparently neom needs to hire another 1500 employees in 2022 thats potentially 125 people per month to interview, onboard, process, reply etc. and sometimes even multiple people as some may not be fit for the application.

Anyways, i am just gonna tell me story from the beginning and i hope theres some info for everyone.

Upfront note, I am from Austria, been in UAE for 16 years, and that we are a family of 4 - 2 kids (18 months girl and 6 years boy).

I was approached in mid december by a recruiter based in dubai and i seemed to be a good fit for the position (its within the project development) and had my interview 10 days later (which was impressive considering people were in their christmas holidays). my interview was with my future line manager and a special consultant (hr could not attend).

(BTW, the recruiter in dubai who approached me was perfect!! i am still in touch with him and hes so helpful.)

5 days after that, still impressed as its the festive season, i got the thumbs up from my dubai recruiter, with the info that this means neom will issue their offer letter probably the week after new years.
impressively, this was spot on, although i just received the link to submit the documents like medical questionnaire and other simple things. unfortunately, a key person then was on covid leave but at his return i instantly received my offer letter in the first week of February 2022. unfortunately, there was a mistake and i could not sign it. i told my neom recruiter and they adjusted it within 10 days. so i then officially signed my offer letter in the 3rd week of February and was contacted by the onboarding team 5 days after that followed with an onboarding teams call (there was 4 of us on the call) with more info and Q&A.

then it took about 10 days for Hire Right (a third party hired by neom to take care of this professionally) to reach out to you to upload all your documents required for the back ground check. its basically refrence letters, or previous contracts so they can verify you actually worked at mentioned firms as per your CV. pretty simple and when you did nothing wrong, its all easy and good. they seem to be pretty quick too as my previous employer already told me that they reach out to him (36hrs after i did the online application). FYI, they request you to hide any kind of information on previous salaries, bonuses etc. they just need prove that you did work there.

now, it all seems to be pretty smooth and rather quick, as i think i am 75% through the onboarding and expect that i can start my visa process end next week. NOTE: i did not resign yet. i will only do that once EVERYTHING including visa is done as you never know what can happen, but back to the smooth operation - well yes, i seems like but NO it isnt really. as mentioned before, they have a lot going on and are "slow" or "delayed" with responses. its in my nature to follow up and babysit [projects] - in this case to get my employment sorted as quick as possible, so i called, emailed, whats app etc as much as i could - considering not to be on anyone's nerves. this really helps - obviously.


So now to accommodation and kids in neom (schooling)

as i understood you arrive to NC2 and need to travel 35-45 mins each way. majority of the offices are in NC1. Oxagon is different and whoever is jooing the oxagon family is going to be in "NIC". NC2 only has studios ( 1 bed available). if you have a family you will be on a waiting list and hope to get your 2 bedroom cabin in NC1 as soon as possible. families have priority over a couple or singles.

school is about to open the enrollment and their expansion is approved. they have school up to grade 8 and early learning/day care for toddlers. tons of activities happen after school and i am sure the kids are very busy there (referring to NC1). the communites can be seen on google and it looks pretty nice.

if all things work out i am excited about the nature as it is all virgin land, and go down to aqaba which is 2hrs15min driving distance.

flights from neom bay are for employees and their relatives only ( i reckon also for suppliers and contractors) and can be booked via Kanoo website. there are flights to riyadh and jeddah on thrusday late afternoon and back to neom on saturdays evening. i also heard flydubai will soon fly direct to dubai ( i reckon this will be their first international route).

i understood the relocation allowance of 75kSAR is reimbursed and not paid in full. however it is paid with your first salary in neom.

as many also wonder about the salary - so my salary was topped up 30% from my current salary in dubai + all the allowances which are 22 days remote working days, 30 days annual leave, 2 domestic flights per month, bonus scheme, flight to home destination 1 per annum, insurance and visa for family...

so yea, thats my insight. biggest worry is the school and accommodation right now, but hoping this will work out. i have put my application online - thanks to Elena who is in charge of Neoms community school. shes been great so far. they teach in IB btw.


okedoke, hope this could clarify a few things for a few people. happy to share more down the line and lookign forward to ready more info soon.

Best regards and take it easy!

Tekdxb

Hey Alex23 - great to hear you arrived. hope you had a smooth journey. how is NC2 and how are the offices in NC1? which department are you working?

did you notice some construction for new cabins in NC1?


best regards

Gulf_European

That should be the motto of the Middle East - everything can change from day to day

If you're looking at cash in pocket at the end of the month, I'd reckon NEOM (although the lower salary of the two) will get you more. But in terms of life quality, living in Riyadh does seem like a nicer option.
Nothing to say that you wont be able to move out to NEOM in a couple of years anyway, when things are a bit better.

The 30% increase btw is on total package, so your base salary might not be 30% more but overall package will be around 25-30%.

I had about 1.5 hrs commute pre-pandemic so 2 hours doesnt sound too bad. But how's evening activites in NC2? Gym, pool, sports - all in NC1? Is it possible to get a car and drive yourself betweent the camps? I hate being tied to a bus schedule, want to be free to move as I like tbh. I wouldnt mind staying a bit longer in NC1 for gym/sports, dinner and then head back in my own car.

Laguna_1

this is exactly what I am hoping to do too. Never been one to be tied to a specific schedule and I reckon most of the gym stuff is in Nc1 ( i believe in Nc1 there is a ladies only gym and mixed gym). I haven’t been able to find out what the facilities are like sports wise in nc2 and with the better food options and potential longer working hours I reckon dinner and gym in nc1 then drive back at your own leisure

i actually enjoy driving so don’t mind the commute myself. How long is the walk between the nc1 bus stop and the offices as I imagine in the summer heat, you’ve be soaked before u even get into the office. I am hoping the car parking is closer and u cab stroll in.

is it all electric out in neom and or still good old petrol cars wise. I have heard of the stock cars that people share per department but I would be looking to purchase to allow easy commuting and also weekend trips.