UAE unveils new Labour Law

Major changes have been made to the Labour laws by the Ministry of Labour in the UAE. The old laws had seen foreign nationals fall foul in many cases but the new laws provides more flexible labour mobility for workers. 

The new laws cover application of ministry-approved contracts, conditions for terminating employees and labour permits to work for new employer. The ministry believes this will forge a stronger relationship between employers and workers and enhance the labour market across the country by ensuring transparency and encouraging more flexible labour mobility for workers.

The new rules, which were unveiled on Monday by Minister of Labour Saqr Ghobash, offers more protection to the workers and will see the creation of a unified standard labour contract. 

“The new rules will also bring greater transparency, clarity and tighter monitoring of labour contract conditions and ensure both employer and employee enter into fully voluntary relationships,” a statement said.

The six-month ban handed to employees will also be lifted if it is mutually terminated by the employer and the employee. Hence, employees will be able to join new companies even if they have not completed the contract period in their place of employment. 

The law states that "A new permit can be granted when both worker and employer mutually consent to terminating the contract during the term provided that the worker has completed at least six months employment or if workers qualify for a skill set series classified by the ministry.

The six-month rule is waived if the worker has skill levels classified by the ministry as 1, 2, and 3 meaning those who hold a university degree, post secondary diploma or high school diploma, respectively."

Meanwhile, a worker may be granted a work permit for all term and non-term contracts if it is determined that the employer has failed to meet legal and contractual obligations, including but not limited to when the employer fails to pay the worker’s wages for more than 60 days.

The new labour law is expected to come into effect in January, 2016.