Cash-strapped Saudi Arabia switches to Gregorian calendar to pay civil servants less

‘Saudi Arabian civil servants will lose 11 days of pay after the country switched to the Gregorian calendar, the predominant format for organizing time in the West. The switch is part of austerity measures meant to curb the budget deficit.
Previously, only the private sector of the Gulf monarchy used the Gregorian calendar of its oil customers to calculate salaries, while the public sector has used the Islamic lunar Hijri calendar since 1932. Under it, a year comprises of 12 months lasting 354 or 355 days, or 11 days shorter than the Gregorian calendar. The salaries are calculated on annual basis, so a longer year translates into less payment for the employees.’
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