Just my 2 cents....
I agree with the previous posts. Dubai is a tough market nowadays... Coming to a foreign country where it is very tough to get used to, is a very difficult change, especially if coming with family.
Nowadays companies, not just aviation companies, are reducing housing allowances and giving less benefits, (from the previous ones which were crappy to begin with).
Dubai is a VERY expensive city to live in, the only thing that is cheap here is food...other than that, everything else is expensive.
Emirates is a good option because they take care of you as far as paying for all of your housing costs (utilities included). But corporate arena is very tough. They just give you a lousy housing allowance that will not be enough to rent anything that you would like. You woul dbe forced to move to Sharjah so you can make ends meet.
All of ,y friends that work for other companies, have told me tht their companies are starting to drastically cut costs. Even if in your contract it states that you get business class tickets back home, now they will give you economy. No salary raises, even though the inflation and cost of everything has gone way up...these are the things that you will be dealing with, and the arabs are not a easy crowd to deal with...
just my 2 cents on the subject...