Labor Laws in UAE

To become a long-term resident, expats need to make sure that they will be working in UAE throughout their stay. Employment in general and the relationship between employer and employee in particular are regulated by the Ministry of Labor in the UAE.

The details of all occupations are based on the UAE Labour Law of 1980, which clearly states the duties and responsibilities of employers and employees including details on holidays, worker’s compensation and employment contracts. According to this law, UAE nationals have the right to work. Only if UAE nationals are not suitable or available for a certain position may a company hire foreign workers. In this case, the employer has to prefer Arab nationals over applicants of other nationalities.

The maximum working hours for the private sector are officially eight per day or 48 hours per six-day week (with nine hours for those in retail, hotels or restaurants). However, 10-hour days over a five-day week are common, with no overtime paid and, in some cases, no time off in lieu of overtime worked either.

The official weekend for the public sector was changed in September 2006 from Thursday/Friday to Friday/Saturday. While many private-sector companies already operated a Friday/Saturday weekend to remain as close as possible to the Western working week, the government is studying whether it should apply this ruling across the board to all private-sector companies because, according to the Federal Labour Law, only Friday is a day off.

On the whole, about 2.6 million people or 90% of the overall labor force in the UAE are expats or migrant workers. Indians alone account for 45% of the total number of foreign employees. This shows that, despite preferential treatment of UAE nationals under the “Emiratisation” measures by the government, the UAE is open to welcoming foreign residents to its workforce.

If you're coming to live in the UAE, you, your husband, wife or partner are most probably coming to work. With so much competition for jobs in your home country, you have many more opportunities to do what you want in Dubai than elsewhere, especially if you have a university degree and know the right people, because there's such a shortage of quality individuals in the workforce.

For Western nationals used to Western, staff-friendly working conditions, employment in Dubai may come as something of a shock. With so much cheap labour from Asia and Eastern Europe, certain jobs are, in effect, closed to Westerners, including many ‘trade’ occupations, such as carpenters and plumbers; petrol-pump attendants, shop assistants, construction workers and waiters and waitresses.

There are also several crucial points which you need to be aware of. Once you sign a contract (which may be fixed-term or open), the company for which you work has to sponsor you. As part of the process of acquiring sponsorship and obtaining your residence visa, you must provide a blood sample, which is tested for communicable diseases. If you show any indications of disease, you might be deported.

Your employer can help you in many important aspects, whether you need to rent a villa or apartment, want a bank loan to purchase a car, want to subscribe to some mobile-phone services or obtain a liquor license.

Contract and Duration

The Ministry of Labor issues and attests every employment contract in the UAE. These contracts have to be written and submitted in Arabic or English and abide by the UAE Labor Law. The Ministry of Labor keeps a copy of each employment contract to refer to in case of employment disputes or redundancy. Employer and employee can always review their contract details online if disagreements arise.

It is common to include a probation period in the contract. It should not exceed six months and cannot be extended. In these six months, both employer and employee have the right to end the employment without prior notice. If an employee is dismissed during their probation period, they are not entitled to redundancy benefits. For expats, this situation is an especially problematic one, as loss of employment automatically leads to a loss of their residence permit.

Some expats enter the country on a spousal visa, with their spouse functioning as their sponsor. In this case, they will need a No-Objection Certificate from him or her before they can sign an employment contract. Only then can their employer take care of further paperwork and provide them with a labor card.

UAE Labor Law Guide

Advice

Expats who are not fluent in Arabic may receive an English translation of their work contract. They have to make sure that the English translation is congruent with the Arabic original. In case of a legal dispute, the Arabic version of their contract will be the one the Ministry of Labor refers to.