No ban on workers made to do other jobs

UAE’s Ministry of Labour has introduced new guidelines that will radically affect the imposition of the six-month ban on employees changing their jobs.

Henceforth, the ban will not be applicable to those employees made to do jobs they were not hired for.

Many companies recruit employees for a particular job, but assign a different responsibility. According to the new guidelines, any such employee, provided he can prove his case, will not be issued a six-month ban when cancelling his visa.

Currently a six-month ban is issued to all who cancel their employment visa and fail to obtain a no-objection certificate from his employer.

The ban does not apply if the person has been working in the company for more than three years.

This follows complaints registered by a group of employees who were all issued with a one-year ban by their employer.

Aji Kuriakose, a Sharjah-based lawyer yesterday welcomed the decision saying, “It further eases the conditions of those wanting to leave their jobs. There are several examples of people doing jobs that they were not originally hired for.”

Last year, the Ministry of Labour had announced that it is reviewing the six-month work ban in an effort to facilitate labour movements.

Meanwhile, the Ministry has said it has issued about 530,000 work permits during the first nine months of 2010. 

According to Humaid bin Dimas Swedi, Executive Director of Labour Affairs, Ministry of Labour, a total of 111 thousand companies have also benefitted following the introduction of electronic issuance of work permits.
 

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