Arab Labour Conference praises UAE courts

Delegates at the Arab Labour Conference in Kuwait have praised the UAE for its management of labour conflicts and establishing specialised labour courts.

“This confirms once again our wise leadership’s keenness to protect the rights of labourers and employers under proper laws and legislation,” said Humaid Al Suwaidi, the Ministry of Labour’s assistant undersecretary for labour affairs.

As elected chairman of the committee to develop policies and ways to settle labour disputes and ensure stable work relations, Mr Al Suwaidi gave an overview of the UAE’s labour courts since 2006.

The committee praised the Ministry of Labour’s policies for dealing with disputes, through internal review or by referring any that cannot be resolved amicably to the court.

The committee’s report, ratified by the conference on Wednesday, included a recommendation to establish labour courts in other Arab countries.

The conference emphasised the need to encourage a culture of dialogue between employees and labourers and to develop a database to provide updated statistics and surveys.

Meanwhile, the Labour Court in Abu Dhabi on Wednesday announced plans to set up more committees to help in mediations between disputing parties, and unveiled plans for a new building.

The announcement was made during a panel discussion titled “Labour Law: the Reality and the Aspirations”.

Hasan Al Hamed, managing director of the Labour Court, highlighted its plans to set up offices at industrial areas and near labour camps to educate the public on initiatives and rules.

Mr Al Hamed also highlighted the court’s plans from 2014 to 2018, which include a new building in Mussaffah.

The Labour Court is also in discussions with several banks to open a branch at the court to make it easier for labourers to receive financial compensation.

Mr Al Hamed said cases were always first sent to the reconciliation section. If an agreement could not be reached, disputes were sent to the Court of First Instance in front of a committee.

Last year, 2,485 cases were settled at the Labour Court while 4,447 went to regular courts.