All You Need To Know About The New February Labour Laws

A variety of new labour standards for the private sector are taking effect in the UAE as of today, February 2, 2022. Under the new labour legislation, the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation will issue twelve distinct types of work permits and implement six employment patterns. Part-time, flexible, and remote employment are all options.

The UAE announced a significant change in the working week, shifting it from Sunday to Thursday to Monday to Friday. This went into place on Monday, January 3, 2022, and is solely required for government employees; nonetheless, most private-sector businesses have followed suit. Companies who adhere to the new working week will now have weekends on Saturday and Sunday.

The activities of Federal Decree-Law No 33 of 2021, which was issued on Monday, November 15, 2021, would allow workers in the private sector to “choose temporary and flexible work, freelancing jobs, condensed working hours, and shared tasks.” Dr Abdulrahman Al Awar, Minister of Human Resources and Emiratisation said: “In the condensed-hours model if an employee works 40 hours a week as per the contract, he can now perform the 40 hours in three days”. This can be put into effect if the employer and the employee agree to all clauses in the contract.

As of 2nd February, two persons can undertake one job and share the hours, as long as the employer agrees. People can now work for two distinct businesses for a set amount of hours or days, or if a specific activity needs to be completed, someone can take on temporary labour. Employees on permanent contracts will be moved to fixed-term contracts that can be renewed for up to three years. This is because of a new law requiring employment agreements to be restricted. The probation duration cannot be more than 6 months, and they must be terminated with two weeks’ notice.