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U.A.E. Personnel and Labor Laws
United Arab Emirates > U.A.E. Political and Legal System > U.A.E. Personnel and Labor Laws
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Personnel and Labor Laws of the United Arab Emirates 
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Types of Labor Laws Edit
There are four main types of Labor Laws in the United Arab Emirates with the Federal Labor Law acting as the most governing and influential. The other three types are enacted in economic free zones in which they have their own particular requirements for workmanship. http://www.dubaifreezonesuae.com/jebel_ali_fze.html
These zones include:
- The Jebel Ali Free Zone
- The Dubai International Financial Center Free Zone
- The Dubai Technology and Media Free Zone. (TECOM, 2004)
Fundamentals of The Federal Labor Law Edit
The Federal Labor Law, having the power to succeed over the Free Zone Labor Laws, is most commonly used throughout the seven Emirates. Considering immigrant workers make up about 90% of the workforce, there are many prerequisites in order to work in the UAE including Employment Visas, Labor cards and Medical tests. There is no legal minimum wage, and they are paid monthly, weekly or daily. Although there are many aspects of UAE's Labor Laws that are comparable to the rest of the world, there are many distinctive elements as well.
Laws for juveniles:
- Must be 15 years of age to be employed
- they are subject to limitations such as the amount of hours and conditions in which they work.
Laws for women:
- they are eligible for employment in general
- they are prohibited to work from the hours of 10 pm to 7 am or working in dangerous or difficult positions. (UAE Ministry of Labor, [MOL], 2008)
- they are entitled to 45 days of maternity leave with a maximum of 100 days unpaid.
The Kafala System Edit
The system of employment under which it operates, known as the Kafala System, is the foundation for legal matters pertaining to employment and residency of immigrant workers. Under this system, those who desire to work in the UAE enter into a contract with an institution or employer in which they receive an entry visa and a residence permit in exchange for their obligation to work for their designated sponsor or employer. (International Labor Migration to the Gulf: Understanding Variations in the Kafala System, 2008) Although technically illegal in the UAE, those who gain employment under this system are generally expected to forfeit their passport to their sponsor for the duration of employment. While the purpose of this structure is to control the flow of labor, many believe it encourages corruption, allows injustice to occur, and can infringe on human rights.
Flaws with the Laws Edit
There have been many reports about acts of injustice and abuse to migrant workers in the United Arab Emirates that imply that the Labor Laws are written to favor employers. It is commonly understood that laws are enforced with ease and discrimination is very common and not frowned upon. The UAE proposed a Draft Labor Law of 2007, which was highly criticized by the Humans Rights Watch among other International organizations for failing to protect the ongoing abuse to migrant workers as well as the continuing problem of discrimination against women in the workforce. (UAE: Draft Labor Law Violates International Standards, 2007) Although the Draft Labor Law seems to neglect important issues, the UAE did request evaluation from the public, demonstrating their intentions for improvement.
Sources Edit
1. Jebel Ali Free Zone [JAFZA], (2003) Retrieved October 17, 2008. http://www.dubaifreezonesuae.com/jebel_ali_fze.html 2. The Dubai Technology and Media Free Zone Employment Regulations [TECOM] (2004). Retrieved October 16, 2008 via http://www.tecom.ae/law/law_11.htm 3. United Arab Emirates Ministry of Labor [MOL], (2008). Federal Labour Law and Regulations. Retrieved October 20th, 2008. http://www.mol.gov.ae/molinfo/index.aspx 4. Barria, L. A. , 2008-03-26 "International Labor Migration to the Gulf: Understanding Variations in the Kafala System" Paper presented at the annual meeting of the ISA's 49th ANNUAL CONVENTION, BRIDGING MULTIPLE DIVIDES, Hilton San Francisco, SAN FRANCISCO, CA, USA <Not Available>. 2008-10-08 from http://www.allacademic.com/meta/p252177_index.html 5. UAE: Draft Labor Law Violates International Standards, 2007. Humans Rights Watch. Retrieved October 18, 2008. http://www.hrw.org/english/docs/2007/03/25/uae15547.htm
Reserved by Stephanie Butler.
