UAE Labour Law

[thatwasclose]

Thought I would start a thread about the Law where we work and how it effects us at Ek.
UAE labour law is taken from Federal Law number 8 of 1980. Chapter 4 section 2 is where leave can be found. Article 76 states that the employer may at his discretion assign the date of commencement of leave but may not split it into more than 2 parts.

The next time leave planners suddenly plonk you with 4 days leave to eat up your leave time send an email asking if this is complaint with the law. Would be good for a giggle at least.

[thatwasclose]

Actually I was reading about labour law not because I am totally strange though clearly I am odd, I was trying to figure out the implications of the cabin crew receiving 30 days leave, and no public holidays. I cannot find where this is legal. On a long shot, does anyone have a reference ? I understand we get 42 because we do not get public holidays. Our peers in HR get 42 and the public holidays.

[ruserious]

Always wondered about the legality of the CC contract
A lot of the private sector get 22 working days plus the dozen or so public holidays.
Of course 22 working days adds up to just over 30

[nolimitholdem]

UAE labour law is to protect employers, not employees. Hence organized labour is illegal.

As far as the cabin crew, it doesn't really seem that any duty rules apply to them whatsoever. Oh, sure, there is lip service paid to rest days and the like but who ever witnessed a "rule" that couldn't be waived when EK wanted it. Throw in the sociopathic CC "managers" and it's like something from a Dickens novel.

So they get what they deserve: massive resignations and embarrassingly high attrition rates. I say good on 'em.

:hmm:

[thatwasclose]

Free zones are run under different rules, hence 22 days vacation. Emirates operates under UAE law, hence is it legal?

[Emma Royds]

It is questionable if the labour law even applies to us at EK, since individuals who are employed by the federal government or a government department are exempted from the labour law.

We are not employed directly by the government but EK could quite possibly fall into the category of being a 'government department'.

[777boyindubai]

We (that is EK, for you, Mr. Mana!) are a semi goverment entity. Designed like that so they can pick and choose the laws that are applicable to us. Note that ground staff who are non-Muslim don't get reduced working hours in Ramadan. Even though the Labour "Law" says that they must.....

Keep Discovering......

[Dropp the Pilot]

The law also says that if you leave an employer the entire amount of your EOSB must be in your hands before they cancel your visa. For some people that's a quite important order of events and I don't believe Emirates are complying. Perhaps one the numerous recent departees can describe what they have experienced in this regard.

[Plazbot]

Federal HR policy (as in those working for Federal entities) states 22 days for everybody under a certain level of management. I don't have it handy but I expect the minimum days for pilots and cabin crew are specified in the CARs. I will have a look later unless someone beats me to it.


Edit. Could not see min days in CARs for pilots and CC but did not look very hard. ATC is specified however.

[777boyindubai]

Good point, Dropp. I heard from a Purser that they cancelled his visa first. Then paid him.....

Now at EY. Much happier.

[thatwasclose]

Plaz, the actual Fed law document I am looking at states 30. Even our drivers get 30 .

[harry the cod]

Be careful what you wish for. Would you really want the whole year split into 2 leave blocks? I accept that 4 days thrown in whenever it suits them is taking the pee, eye, double es but 21 days and 21 days. Really?

A 2-3 week block and several 7-10 days throughout the year works better for me.

Harry

[SOPS]

Everyone is different, Harry. I like two 3 week blocks. ( not that I can get them!).

[halas]

I understand that public holidays are deducted from the total leave days for those in the EK office on 42 days leave contract.

halas

[camber]

They get away with not giving crew public holidays, by, wait for it, factoring our salaries, to compensate for it. It really is taking the you know what, but that is how the Company gets away with it. As stated before, as EK is deemed to be a Government entity, it doesn't need to comply with the UAE Labour Law (direct quote from HR).

[120feet]

So just a question about factoring pay. Is your pay check bigger on the months with public Holidays? Does it go up or down during Ramadan? Do you at least work less hours during Ramadan? Perhaps a 70 hour month instead of 90? 52 weeks a year X 2 days = 104. That's how many weekend days off you get in the office. 12 X 8= 96 is how many days off you get off on the 330/340. So office staff automatically get an extra months of days off just on allotted week ends. So with the factoring if I was on the 330/340, I should get and extra week of pay for this plus an extra two weeks of pay for public holidays, plus lets say an extra week for reduced work during Ramadan. So when does this extra months salary show up on the pay checks, or is it a separate check?

[thatwasclose]

Halas,
I understand that no, that is not the case. 42 days leave, and the public holidays.

Nowhere does it state a government entity does not have to follow the rules.

As far as splitting your leave, it says the employer can't make you have more than two, nothing on if the employee wants to multi split.

[glofish]

The law in these regions is set up by the masters to serve the masters and not to protect the people.
The judicature is intended to protect this situation and the judges appointed by the masters.
Whatever law could turn out to contradict the masters interest will be changed in a fraction of time.
Always bear that in your mind.

[Nikita81]

EK is not the subject of UAE Labour Law.

I went to the Ministry of Labour when I had problem with EK and they told me to go to the General Directorate of Residency in Dubai, because Ministry is not responsible for EK. In the Directorate they asked me about my business with them, I told them that I want to complain on EK and they told me "good luck with that it's a waste of time" in a sarcastic way.

This is EK's official recognition that EK is not the subject of Federal Law:

http://i60.tinypic.com/30kpx8i.png

In another words, nobody is protecting foreigners in UAE.

[allaru]

EK do not follow labour law full stop (maybe the post above explains why), so many provisions regarding the splitting of leave, overtime during fridays, public holidays, extra days off for fridays worked and many many more.

However in their defense it would be almost impossible for them to comply with these rules and operate a 24hr airline. That's fine for us sensible people but it does get a tad annoying when the horse slithered into the room a few years back and started spouting labour law and that we were only entitled to 30 days leave....well I guess that was true but he forgot to mention the other 11 public holidays that if we had to work on under "labour law" we would be given overtime plus days off in lieu..... Oh and after 8 hours of work we could all F%$k off home for the day...like those in the office do.

The bottom line is that there must be give and take, though I feel that the take is a little one sided now days.

[Nikita81]

If you can't manage, don't do it.

If you can't make a sustainable business and greediness is taking over, stop and reconsider your position. Growth is sometimes a bad thing, especially when you don't have enough (capable) people to handle it.

Labour laws are there for a reason - they ensure the give and take equilibrium. No laws, no equilibrium.

[bob777]

It makes me laugh when I see people discuss labor issues in Dubai. You are paid slaves with no rights working for a guy that is de facto a dictator. Going to work in Dubai..and all other " countries" in the area equates to selling your body and soul. If someone had balls it would take 5 days to shut EK down and get out of the Middle Age....but keep playing with your Iphone and drive your gas guzzling ****ty american cars..just please, shut up.

[thatwasclose]

Bob,
1. I don't have a gas guzzling car.
2. The average American worker does not have that many rights
3. The European social democracy system was built on the wealth from colonial plunder
4. Those Chinese shoes you wear are an endorsment of the system of slavery.
5. Grow up
6. If you are from the Southern Hemisphere pretty sure you profited from stealing the land from the natives and enslaving them.
7. See 5

[glofish]

It says "Labour Law", like Labour Camp.

And not "Employment Regulations", like Accommodation.

Think about it.

[bob777]

1) I don't believe it
2) the average american worker has the right to unite with his peers, to strike, to go a to lawyer to take many initiatives that in Dark Age are simply forbidden
3) Germany is a social democracy , lost the war and never had any colonies. That is a prerogative mainly of brits that are the cause of the present situation in the ME and opportunistically taking advantage of it...
4) I wear Italian shoes made in Italy
5) You grow up and more over grow a pair
6) I'm not form the southern hemisphere beside we are now in 2014... if you did not realize it by living in place that is ( by its own calendar) 569 years behind.

[thatwasclose]

1. Ok
2. 50 million Americans live below their official poverty line ( that's $23,000 for a family of 4 ) . I am a former us airline pilot. Striking is not that easy.
3. You have no Chinese products at home? You ever wonder why there are so many Chinese workers in Milan ?
4. 70 years ago, the holocast was occurring in Germany. 26 years ago a person was shot scaling a wall.

The point is that there are laws here. Sure our employer bends them and we don't have solid rights, but by asking questions we might get something's changed. We might not. But you might as well ask.

[400tons]

Bob777
"Germany never had any colonies"???:ugh:
Go back to school and learn history…

[Mach_Krit]

germany had no colonies? as a someone said before, back to school.

List of former German colonies - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_former_German_colonies)

Holocaust yes, murder on the wall yes. The country has evolved and greatly learned from past horrible events.

[Al Murdoch]

Are there any threads about Emirates that don't descend into pathetic bitching? Management must love this forum, it confirms their opinion of us.

[nakbin330]

Bob777.

I used to fly freighters. We'd fly the leather 'uppers' from India and the soles from Libya, into Fiumicino. The Italian workmen would then stitch the two together and, hey presto, genuine Italian shoes made in Italy.

I hope you're not paying over the odds.

[MrMachfivepointfive]

Management must love this forum.
They do. I bear witness that someone very high up the food chain asks his secretary for the highlights every morning.

[Popgun]

They do. I bear witness that someone very high up the food chain asks his secretary for the highlights every morning.

BWAAAAHAAAAHAAAAA!!!

The only way for UAE workers to gain fair and reasonable labour laws is to leave the dictatorship and move to/back to a civilised democracy.

PG

[thatwasclose]

Actually the Oma chap 20 under leave states clearly ....UAE labour law. ...in reference to leave. If you are assigned those crappy 4 day leave blocks email asking, if it is complaint with UAE labour law, which clearly states the employer can only split your leave into two. The employee can request to split it into more than two. For Cabin crew whose leave is less than 30 days, you must email your manager to complain and ask if it is complaint with the law. They are mointering how many complaints are being made over this leave assignment period.
If you don't ask, nothing will happen . We will continue to be sheep. If you do ask, there may be a chance, albeit slim, that something can change. Please encourage your cabin crew to email their managers. If the response is we are not under UAE labour law email back asking for the reference.

[ruserious]

I agree with thatwasclose, managers will tell you whatever they think will make yu go away quickest and give up. My favourite line, is that it has been checked for veracity by our legal department.... well of course it has and they are not biased at all to the organisational needs.