UAE Labour law Definitions and General Provisions
Definitions United Arab Emirates Dubai, Sharjah, Abu Dhabi, Ajman, Ras al
Khaimah, Al ain, Fujairah
UAE Labour law Definitions –United
Arab Emirates
Article 1
For the purpose of this law, the following terms and
expressions shall have the meanings herein assigned to them, unless the context
requires otherwise:
1.
Employer: Any natural or legal person employing
one or more workers in return for any kind of wage.
2.
Worker: Any male or female working, for wage of
any kind, in the service or under the management or control of an employer,
albeit out of his sight. This term applies also to labourers and employees who
are in an employer’s service and are governed by the provisions of this Law.
3.
Firm: Any economic, technical, industrial or
commercial unit where personnel are employed and whose objective is to produce
or market commodities or to provide services of any kind.
4.
Employment Contract: Any agreement, for a
definite or indefinite term, concluded between an employer and an employee,
whereby the latter undertakes to work in the employer's service and under his
management and control, in return for a certain wage that the employer
undertakes to pay.
5.
Work: Any human effort- intellectual, technical
or physical- exerted in return for wage, irrespective of whether such work is
permanent or temporary;
6.
Temporary Work: An assignment that has to be
carried out within a specified period of time. 7. Agricultural Work: Work
involving ploughing, cultivation, harvesting, or breeding of cattle, poultry,
silkworms, bees and the like.
7.
Continuous Service: An uninterrupted service
with the same employer or his legal successor, from the service commencement
date.
8.
Wage: Any consideration, in cash or in kind,
given to a worker, in return for his service under an employment contract,
whether on yearly, monthly, weekly, daily, hourly, piece meal, output or commission
basis. The wage shall include the cost of living allowance. It shall also
include any grant given to a worker as a reward for his honesty or efficiency,
provided such amounts are stipulated in the employment contract or in the
firm’s internal regulations or are being so customarily granted that the firm
workers regard them as part of their wage and not as donations.
9.
Basic Wage: The wage specified in a valid
employment contract, exclusive of any allowances whatsoever.
10.
Occupational Injury: Any of the work-related
diseases listed in the schedule attached hereto or any other injury sustained
by a worker during and by reason of carrying out his duties. Any accident
sustained by a worker on his way to or back from work shall be considered an
occupational injury, provided that the journey to and from work is made without
any break, lingering or diversion from the normal route.
11.
Labour Department: The branches of the Ministry
of Labour and Social Affairs that are in charge of labour affairs in the emirates
of the Federation.
General Provisions
–United Arab Emirates
Article 2
Arabic shall be the language to be used in all records,
contracts, files, data, etc. provided for in this Law or in any orders or
regulations issued in implementation thereof. Arabic shall also be used in
instructions and circulars issued to employees by their employer. Where the
employer besides Arabic uses a foreign language, the Arabic version shall
prevail.
Article 3
The provisions of this Law shall not apply to the following
categories:
1.
Employees of the Federal Government and of
governmental departments of the emirates of the Federation, employees of
municipalities, other employees of federal and local public authorities and
corporations, as well as employees who are recruited against federal and local
governmental projects.
2.
Members of the armed forces, police and
security.
3.
Domestic servants employed in private
households, and the like.
4.
Farming and grazing workers, other than those
working in agricultural establishments that process their own products, and
those who are permanently employed to operate or repair mechanical equipment
required for agricultural work.
Article 4
Any payments due to
an employee or his beneficiaries hereunder shall constitute a first priority
charge on all the employer's moveable and immovable property, and shall be paid
immediately upon settlement of any legal expenses, sums due to the public treasury
and Sharia's alimony awarded under Islamic Law to the wife and children.
Article 5
Actions initiated by employees or their beneficiaries under
this Law shall be exempt from court fees at all stages of litigation and
execution, and shall be dealt with in an expeditious manner. Upon non-admission
or dismissal of a case, the court may order the plaintiff to pay all or part of
the expenses.
Article 6
Without prejudice to the rules provided for under this Law
concerning collective labour disputes, if the employer, the worker or any
beneficiary thereof disputes any of the rights provided for any of them under
this Law, he shall file an application to the competent Labour Department,
which shall summon both parties and take whatever action it deems necessary to
settle the dispute amicably. If no such amicable settlement is reached, the
said Department shall, within two weeks from the date of application, refer the
dispute to the competent court under a memorandum containing a summary of the
dispute, the arguments of both parties, and the Department’s comments. The
court shall, within three days from date of receiving the application, fix a
hearing date and notify the parties accordingly. The court may summon a
representative of the Labour Department to explain the content of the
memorandum submitted by it. UAE Labour Law 5 In all cases, no claim for any of
the rights provided for in this Law shall be heard if brought to court after
the lapse of one year from the date of accrual, nor shall any claim be admitted
if the procedures stated in this Article are not complied with.
Article 7
Any conditions contrary to the provisions of this Law,
albeit precedent to the date of effectiveness, shall be null and void unless
they are more advantageous to the worker.
Article 8
The periods and dates referred to herein shall be calculated
according to the Gregorian calendar. For the purpose of this Law, a calendar
year is regarded as 365 days, and a calendar month as 30 days, unless otherwise
specified in the employment contract.
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