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28 March 2024

Midday break rule in UAE from July 1 until Aug 30

Published
By Mohammed Al Sadafy

The Ministry of Labour has implemented the mid-day break rule which prohibits labourers from outdoor work between 12 noon and 3pm beginning July 1 until August 30.

This is the seventh consecutive year when the midday rule will be in place in the UAE.

Saqr Ghobash, UAE Minister of Labour, anounced the rule issued under Resolution 543.

Mubarak Al Dhahiri, Under-Secretary at MoL, has been assigned to compile a list of work that cannot be stopped during midday due to technical reasons.

The total work hours should not exceed eight hours. Be it in the first half of the day or the second-half or both combined. Labourers ought to be given overtime if they work for more than eight hours a day.

Employers are urged to display timetable of work shifts in prominent places within their premises for labour inspectors to check with ease. The timetable should be in Arabic and in languages that workers understand.

Employers are also required to provide preventive measures to protect  workers from injuries and other occupational hazards such as fire. Employers are also obliged to provide cold water to the labourers.

The penalties imposed on facilities that violate the midday rule are as follows:

Companies that violate the rule for the first time will be transferred to the level (C/category II) for three months and fined Dh10,000.

If the facility was in level C/second category then the ministry will not accept issuing any work permits to them for a minimum of six months in addition to the fine assessed.

In case of repeated violation, the facility will be moved to the level (C/categoryII) and will be banned from issuing work permits for six months and fined Dh15,000.

If the facility was already in the second category level C, they will be banned from issuing work permits for a minimum nine months.

If they violate the rule thrice, then they will be transferred to level C of second class and cannot apply for work permits for ninemonths apart from paying a fine of Dh20,000.
 
If the facility was in level C of second category, it will be prohibted from issuing work permits for a year plus a fine.

However, work such as asphalt making and pouring concrete are exempted from midday rule. Similarly, emergency  functions such as repair on water feed lines, sewer lines, electricity or gas pipelines will be excluded.

Traffic-related work will require intervention by government authority.