Ramadan timings for public sector in UAE

DUBAI - Work at the UAE federal ministries and departments will be from 9am till 2pm during the holy month of Ramadan, the state news agency WAM said.

Meanwhile, the working hours of private sector companies will be reduced from eight to six hours during the Holy month of Ramadan, without affecting the salaries of employees, WAM reported.

Renowned UAE astronomer, Ebrahim al-Jarwan, has predicted that the holy month of Ramadan will start on August 1 and will last for 30 days.

According to the Sharjah-based astronomer, the Ramadan 'Hilal' (crescent moon) will rise on July 30.

"It will then take shape 21 hours and 23 minutes later. It will be difficult to sight the moon from the UAE, but Ramadan will start on August 1," Al Jarwan said.

"The dawn-to-dusk fasting month for Muslims, will last 30 days this year. This means Eid Al Fitr will be on August 31," he added.

During Ramadan, Muslims abstain from food, drink and sensual pleasures from sunrise to sunset and are required to focus on their relationship with god.

Non-competition clause in UAE Labour Law

A labour contract may contain a condition specifying that after the completion of the contract, the employee shall not work with a competitor of the employer. This is to protect the interests of the business of the employer.

The UAE Labour Law states that if the job allotted to the employee allows him to know the employer’s clients or to know the secrets of the job, the employer may stipulate that after the end of his contract, the employee shall not compete with him or share information in any competing project.

A non-competition agreement may be signed before or during the term of the employment, but as per the law, it will only come into effect on termination of the employment contract. The employers may include a clause in the labour contract or sign an additional agreement banning the employees from working for competitors for a certain period. In order to apply non-competition clause certain conditions have to be fulfilled. The employee has to be 21 years old or more at the time of signing the contract. The agreement shall be, as far as time, place and nature of work are concerned, limited to what is necessary to protect the legal interests of the employer. If the job assigned to the employee allows him to know the secrets and know-how of the employer’s business dealings, then the employer may impose non-competition clause.

In the event that the employee works in a company, where such secrecy nature does not apply then the non-competition clause cannot be used.

To impose a non-competition clause against an employee, the non-competition agreement signed between the parties is to be restricted as per the provisions mentioned in the UAE Civil Code and the Labour Law.

Such a stipulation shall not be valid unless it is clearly restricted to certain time, place and type of work, in a sufficiently determined manner so as to constitute a real protection of the legitimate employer’s interests.If the employer terminates the employee or the employee terminates the contract due to a reason that is ascribed to the employer’s fault, then the non-competition conditions shall not be applied against the employee.

Maternity leave for working woman in UAE

I have worked in a company for 6 months only. I have completed the probation period, but currently I am in my ninth month of pregnancy and I have some questions in this regard:
1. Is the woman entitled to maternity leave each time or for once only within her employment with the company?
2. In case of depletion of the maternity leave, am I entitled to extend such period, if necessary, is it paid or without pay and what is the period of such leave?
3. For the period of my service, am I entitled to the whole maternity leave, which is, to my knowledge, 45 days and is it paid or without pay?
I would like to clarify to the questioner that as per the Labour Law the working woman is entitled to maternity leave each time she becomes pregnant and requires such leave, not for once. As for the questioner’s other enquiries, article no. 30 of the Federal Labour Law no. 8 of 1980 states the following:

“A female worker shall be entitled to maternity leave with full pay for a period of forty-five days, including both pre- and post-natal periods, provided that she has completed not less than one year of continuous service with her employer.

A female worker who has not completed the aforesaid period of service shall be entitled to maternity leave with half pay.

A female worker who has exhausted her maternity leave may be absent from work without pay for a maximum period of 100 consecutive or nonconsecutive days if such absence is due to an illness preventing her from resuming her work.
A medical certificate issued by a duly authorised medical institution or authenticated by the competent health authority confirming that the illness is a result of pregnancy or delivery shall document such illness. The leave provided for in the preceding two paragraphs shall not be deducted from other leave periods”.
Questions answered by Advocate Mohammad Ebrahim Al Shaiba of Al Shaiba Advocates and Legal Consultants.

UAE Labour Law and Probation Period

A company that exceeds six months probation is in violation of the UAE Labour LawArticle 37 of the UAE Labour Law states the following: “A worker may be engaged on probation for a period not exceeding six months, during which his services may be terminated by the employer without notice or severance pay; provided that a worker shall not be engaged on probation more than once in the service of any one employer. Where a worker successfully completes his period of probation and remains in his job, the said period shall be reckoned towards his period of service.”

US Consulate General moving to Bur Dubai-No US visas services from Aug 2-4

The US Consulate General in Dubai will move from its current premises at the World Trade Centre to a new facility in Bur Dubai, adjacent to Dubai Creek.

The new Consulate has been built on land donated to the US by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai.

Interviews and other services for US visas and routine consular services for American citizens will be suspended from August 2 to August 4.

All services will resume on Sunday, August 7 at the new building. Emergency services for American citizens will not be affected by the move.

American citizens seeking consular services during this period can make arrangements at the US Embassy in Abu Dhabi.

Jennifer Rasamimanana, Charge d'Affaires of the US Mission to the UAE, said: "We have here around 40,000 Americans residing in the UAE while we have around 1,000 companies operating here."

The new facility will allow the Consulate General to increase the efficiency and accessibility of its services to the public. It receives around 50,000 visa application a year for people from 125 different nationalities, mainly Iran.