President His Highness Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan has issued a new law aimed at regulating labour relations in the private sector across the emirates.
Dubbed as the most sweeping labour reforms in the country to date, Federal Decree – Law No.33 of 2021 will come into force on February 2, 2022.
This includes numerous provisions intended to create a flexible and competitive labour market, attract top talents, empower the female workforce, and guarantee the rights of both the employer and the employee in a balanced manner.
A provision in the new law introduces new flexible work models, which give a person the choice to work on a temporary basis, freelance jobs, condensed work timings, as well as shared jobs.
The rules do not apply to employees in the public sector and domestic workers.
Dr Abdulrahman Al Awar, Minister of Human Resources and Emiratisation, said: “In the condensed working week, employees can choose to finish their 40 hours in three days instead of one week as per the contract signed by both parties.”
The new provision enumerates the new flexible work models as follows:
Part-time job: A person may work for one or more employers for a specified number of working hours or days.
Temporary work: A person only renders job or service for a specific period of time. The contract ends upon the completion of a project or service.
Flexible work: The work hours of a person is based on the volume of work given. In this setup, an employer may also allow employees to choose their job timings.
In addition, the new decree also will also set a minimum wage. This will be announced by the UAE Cabinet in the months prior to its implementation in February 2022.
The Minister of Human Resources and Emiratisation will be tasked to do a proposal regarding the new minimum wage, in collaboration with the relevant authorities. Prior to this decree, the UAE labour law did not specify any minimum wage, apart from a provision that states that the salaries of all employees must cover their basic needs.
