Worse still, many private sector employers prefer to hire foreign workers because they can be dismissed more easily. Some employers also believe, rightly or wrongly, that national workers are more expensive, less productive, enjoy a personal safety net, that they would resign if employment conditions were not exactly ‘right’, and that they always aspire to move into the public sector, which offers better pay and conditions. However, the underlying problems remain. They not only limit labour productivity in the GCC, but also reduce employment-creating capacity in these countries.