I work for a security company in Dubai. My duty hours every day are 12 hours, including a one-hour break and two hours of mandatory overtime.
We sign a time sheet every month that includes our duty hours. During Ramadan, we worked 12 hours as usual but were made to sign a pre-filled time sheet stating 10 hours of work.
When we asked about the change, we were told it is according to the UAE law. Is there any law in the UAE for the month of Ramadan where actual working hours are reduced to 10 hours on time sheets but we have to work 12 hours as usual? SS, Dubai
The UAE's Labour Law has always stated that working hours are to be reduced by two hours during the month of Ramadan. It is also included in the new Labour Law, Federal Law 33 of 2021, which came into force on February 2.
This also applies to SS and his colleagues, although I am aware that many security staff are forced to work excessive hours without proper breaks and days off.
Any employer who amends a time sheet and forces an employee to sign it, but fails to reduce their working hours, is clearly breaking the law.
No employer should make anyone sign an incorrect document, especially when the intention is to subvert a very clear law.
SS's actual working hours are also in excess of those mandated by law. Article 17 of the Labour Law states: “The maximum normal working hours for workers shall be eight hours per day, or 48 hours per week.”
The implementing regulations, in Article 15, which refer to working hours, clarify it: “The employer may employ the worker for additional working hours over the normal working hours, provided that they do not exceed two hours per day.”
It adds: “In all cases, the total working hours must not exceed 144 hours every three weeks.”
This employer is breaking the law in terms of hours worked as well as making employees sign an incorrect time sheet and ignoring the reduced working day mandate during Ramadan.
SS and his colleagues have the right to register a case with the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation. The ministry can be contacted by telephone on 600 590 000 or via the chat function on the website. It is also possible to request a call back.
I am aware that registering a case can cause a problem for individual employees, but the ministry is supportive and can speak to a company that breaks the law.
If a company is known to have breached the UAE Labour Law, they will be unable to take on further employees as their visa quotas can be restricted.
I resigned from my job last week after working for the company for 21 months. My contract states I am entitled to Dh3,000 as airfare once every two years.
However, the company is refusing to pay me this allowance as part of my end-of-service settlement. They aren’t willing to pay even a part of this amount.
They claim I will be entitled to this amount only after completing two years. Don’t they have to pay for my flight if I leave the UAE? MT, Ras Al Khaimah
MT’s entitlement to this benefit depends on the exact wording in the employment contract.
If the contract states the airfare is payable after completing two years, then the employer is correct as this period has not been completed. The employer will pay part of it only if the contract states the benefit is payable pro-rata.
The issue of paying for a flight on leaving the UAE is covered in Article 13 of the UAE Labour Law.
“Bearing the repatriation expenses of the worker to his place of recruitment or any other place that both parties had agreed upon, unless he has already joined the service of another employer or unless the reason for terminating the contract was attributed to the worker, then the latter shall be liable for incurring those expenses,” the law states.
In this case, as MT has resigned, the employer is only obliged to pay for a flight if he is leaving the UAE to return to his home country if he does not have the money to pay.
Keren Bobker is an independent financial adviser and senior partner with Holborn Assets in Dubai, with more than 25 years’ experience. Contact her at keren@holbornassets.com. Follow her on Twitter at @FinancialUAE
The advice provided in our columns does not constitute legal advice and is provided for information only
The specs
Engine: 3.0-litre 6-cyl turbo
Power: 374hp at 5,500-6,500rpm
Torque: 500Nm from 1,900-5,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 8.5L/100km
Price: from Dh285,000
On sale: from January 2022
Who's who in Yemen conflict
Houthis: Iran-backed rebels who occupy Sanaa and run unrecognised government
Yemeni government: Exiled government in Aden led by eight-member Presidential Leadership Council
Southern Transitional Council: Faction in Yemeni government that seeks autonomy for the south
Habrish 'rebels': Tribal-backed forces feuding with STC over control of oil in government territory
The rules on fostering in the UAE
A foster couple or family must:
- be Muslim, Emirati and be residing in the UAE
- not be younger than 25 years old
- not have been convicted of offences or crimes involving moral turpitude
- be free of infectious diseases or psychological and mental disorders
- have the ability to support its members and the foster child financially
- undertake to treat and raise the child in a proper manner and take care of his or her health and well-being
- A single, divorced or widowed Muslim Emirati female, residing in the UAE may apply to foster a child if she is at least 30 years old and able to support the child financially
David Haye record
Total fights: 32
Wins: 28
Wins by KO: 26
Losses: 4
Is it worth it? We put cheesecake frap to the test.
The verdict from the nutritionists is damning. But does a cheesecake frappuccino taste good enough to merit the indulgence?
My advice is to only go there if you have unusually sweet tooth. I like my puddings, but this was a bit much even for me. The first hit is a winner, but it's downhill, slowly, from there. Each sip is a little less satisfying than the last, and maybe it was just all that sugar, but it isn't long before the rush is replaced by a creeping remorse. And half of the thing is still left.
The caramel version is far superior to the blueberry, too. If someone put a full caramel cheesecake through a liquidiser and scooped out the contents, it would probably taste something like this. Blueberry, on the other hand, has more of an artificial taste. It's like someone has tried to invent this drink in a lab, and while early results were promising, they're still in the testing phase. It isn't terrible, but something isn't quite right either.
So if you want an experience, go for a small, and opt for the caramel. But if you want a cheesecake, it's probably more satisfying, and not quite as unhealthy, to just order the real thing.
Baby Driver
Director: Edgar Wright
Starring: Ansel Elgort, Kevin Spacey, Jamie Foxx, Lily James
Three and a half stars
Keep it fun and engaging
Stuart Ritchie, director of wealth advice at AES International, says children cannot learn something overnight, so it helps to have a fun routine that keeps them engaged and interested.
“I explain to my daughter that the money I draw from an ATM or the money on my bank card doesn’t just magically appear – it’s money I have earned from my job. I show her how this works by giving her little chores around the house so she can earn pocket money,” says Mr Ritchie.
His daughter is allowed to spend half of her pocket money, while the other half goes into a bank account. When this money hits a certain milestone, Mr Ritchie rewards his daughter with a small lump sum.
He also recommends books that teach the importance of money management for children, such as The Squirrel Manifesto by Ric Edelman and Jean Edelman.
Farage on Muslim Brotherhood
Nigel Farage told Reform's annual conference that the party will proscribe the Muslim Brotherhood if he becomes Prime Minister.
"We will stop dangerous organisations with links to terrorism operating in our country," he said. "Quite why we've been so gutless about this – both Labour and Conservative – I don't know.
“All across the Middle East, countries have banned and proscribed the Muslim Brotherhood as a dangerous organisation. We will do the very same.”
It is 10 years since a ground-breaking report into the Muslim Brotherhood by Sir John Jenkins.
Among the former diplomat's findings was an assessment that “the use of extreme violence in the pursuit of the perfect Islamic society” has “never been institutionally disowned” by the movement.
The prime minister at the time, David Cameron, who commissioned the report, said membership or association with the Muslim Brotherhood was a "possible indicator of extremism" but it would not be banned.
