New Federal Labour Law Issued in the UAE: An overhaul to a decades-old regime - JD Supra
In mid-November, the UAE Cabinet approved a new Labour Law, Federal Law Number 33 of 2021 (the New Labour Law) which will come into force on 2 February 2022 and repeals Law Number 8 of 1980 (the Old Law), replacing it entirely. The New Labour Law consolidates many of the changes which have been introduced by the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation (MHRE) through various regulations over the past five years and also introduces significant new changes, thus amounting to a radical overhaul of labour relations in the UAE. It will apply across the UAE, in each of the seven emirates and its free zones (with the exception of the DIFC and ADGM).
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Labour Law) which will come into force on 2 February 2022 and repeals Law Number 8 of 1980 (the Old Law),
replacing it entirely. The New Labour Law consolidates many of the changes which have been introduced by
years and also introduces significant new changes, thus amounting to a radical overhaul of labour relations in
The New Labour Law refers in several parts to Implementing Regulations to be issued by the MHRE, which will
contain further explanatory provisions to the law and also set out further frameworks. It has not yet been
announced when these Regulations will be available. However, this structure gives the MHRE much welcome
The New Labour Law recognises non-traditional forms of employment, which have been increasingly popular
in other developed jurisdictions. The new forms of employment relationship include part-time, temporary
and flexible (or freelance) employment relationships. The forms of employment recognized by the New
• Full-time employment: working a single job during all working hours on all working days.
• Part-time employment: working for an employer or employers for a specified number of working hours or
• Temporary employment: work that requires a specified amount of time to complete, or task-based work.
• Flexible (or Freelance) employment: working for a variable number of working hours or working days
This provision consolidates the recent recognition by MHRE of part-time working and provides for greater
recognition of other work patterns. However, the detail of how employers can engage employees in each
Unlimited-term contracts will be obsolete under the New Labour Law, with all employees (regardless of
contracts to fixed-term contracts. However, notwithstanding the fixed-term nature of the contracts,
Extensions or renewals of fixed-term contracts will be considered continuous service for the purposes of the
The maximum probation period set out in the New Labour Law is unchanged and remains six months.
If an employee decides to resign during the probationary period to pursue alternative employment in the
The New Labour Law contains a number of new provisions permitting the assignment of different work to an
obligation to have written by-laws or policies. In our view, employer policies or handbooks will increasingly
The New Labour Law provides for work hours to be 8 hours a day or 48 hours a week.
The regulation of overtime hours is radically overhauled with a cap of 144 hours of working time in a three- week period, with the new law making it clear that all overtime rates are based on basic salary only.
An employee is entitled to one weekly rest day to be agreed with the employer (which does not have to be
The New Labour Law lists an expanded set of circumstances where deductions may be made from an
source: https://www.jdsupra.com/legalnews/new-federal-labour-law-issued-in-the-9995319/
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