YOU and The LAW (KSA / QATAR / UAE)

~ Questions answered by Advocate Muhammad Jaber Nader, based in Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
I came to work as a janitor seven years ago. I sweep the floor, wash the dishes and do all errands that an office servant would do. The company treats me as a house servant. They do give me neither vacation time nor overtime, among other denials of my rights.
The job category "house servant" requires you to work within a family in a private residence. "House servants" work under different rules. Working in an office puts you under the category of "office janitor," not "house servant". You are right to say your employer is illegally denying your rights under the labor law as a janitor at a company.
The labor law says about....
working hours, generally speaking, a worker is not expected to work more than eight hours a day, 48 hours a week. This can be adjusted with the consent of the Ministry of Labor in accordance with the law and depending on the type of work. Muslims work six-hour days during Ramadan. Commute time and prayer time are not included in the daily working hours — that is personal time. Workers are to receive time-and-a-half overtime salary, which means you get half of your hourly salary as overtime on top of your regular hourly salary. To calculate your hourly rate divide your annual salary by 365.25 and then divide that sum by eight to get your basic hourly wage.

For example, if you are paid SR48,000 per year, you divide that sum by 365.25 to get the daily wage (SR131.4) and then divide that by eight (SR16.4) to get your base hourly wage. You can then multiply your hourly wage by 1.5 to determine your overtime hourly wage. In this example your overtime hourly wage would be SR24.6.
Friday is typically the weekly day of rest, to coincide with the day of Juma prayer. Some jobs offer a half day on Thursday or a two-day Thursday-Friday weekend, but they are only required by law to give one day per week, which does not have to be a Friday. The important thing here is that employers are required generally to provide a day of rest for every six working days. (Some exceptions can apply for extenuating circumstances, but employers must compensate workers for that extra time, either as overtime or as a deferred day off owed to the employee.). Employers must accommodate workers' religious obligations, but that time used is not counted toward the workers' daily shift.


I am working as an office manager. I had a question regarding my ESB. I joined my present company in January 2006 with a two-year contract. After completion of the two years I did not sign a new contract and so I am under the impression that my contract became open-ended. Now I have received a good offer from another company and I am planning to resign. Please inform me how my ESB should be calculated for four years and four months of work.
The shift to the open-ended contract was the case prior to 2006. But since the implementation of labor-law reforms, that has been eliminated. Now your contract is linked to your iqama. Anyone who renews his contract twice, or works for at least three years in the Kingdom the expiration date of his work/residency visa is the ending date of the contract. In your case, your contract ends at the next expiration date of your iqama. The best thing for you to do is to wait until your iqama is about to expire and turn in your resignation at least 30 days prior to that date.
If you comply with the rules, resigning at the expiration date of your iqama and giving at least 30-days notice then it is your right to collect your full ESB. However, your employer retains the right to grant or deny your request for a no-objection certificate that allows you to shift to another sponsor. Having a positive relationship with your employer will help persuade him to grant this permission. If he does not, then you must leave the country for at least one year before returning under a new sponsor. Also keep in mind that resigning before the end of your contract term (the expiration date of your iqama) might adversely affect the way your ESB is calculated.


I am an expatriate working in a reputable company in Jeddah. Recently my company deducted SR1,000 as a penalty, saying they are not happy with my performance. Secondly here in the company it is a rule that if a worker comes in late his salary is deducted. Is this right according to the law? Please comment.
Articles 70 and 71 of the labor law say a worker may not be fined more than five days pay for any single violation, and no more than one penalty shall be applied for the same violation. Work suspension without pay may not exceed five days in a month. Also, a disciplinary action may not be imposed on a worker except after notifying him in writing, asking him to provide his defense for the record.
Punitive action provided verbally (not recorded for the record) cannot exceed more than one-day wage deduction. If this has not been followed by your company, then the action is all null and void. More importantly a fine may not be imposed on the employee unless this fine is particularly mentioned in the law, the employee’s contract or in company regulations, otherwise a person may not be accused of an action not mentioned in the above.

It goes without saying that no employee may be investigated and fined for someone else’s faults. Every person is responsible only for his own mistakes. Explain this to your company to correct the situation. If adamant you may complain to the Labor Office in your area. As to your question regarding latecomers: Yes, your company has the right to impose punitive action for tardiness. In fact repeated lateness can legally lead to termination.
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~ Questions answered as per Qatar Law
My sponsorship was transferred twice in the past. Now I want to it transferred to a better employer. My current employer refuses to let me go to another sponsor, saying my contract was written out in Doha, not outside it. Does my employer have the right to prevent the transfer of my sponsorship for the third time?
Article 22 of Sponsorship Law No 4/2009 says that foreigners’ sponsorship transfer has to be approved by the Authority Concerned at the Ministry of Justice after new sponsors reach an agreement with old ones.
The place where contacts are written out has nothing to do with sponsorships. Despite this, sponsorship transfer can only happen when sponsors sanction it.


My work contract was registered at the Labour Office. My sponsor, however, does not pay me on a regular basis. He even finalised my residence procedures only one year after I came here. What can I do?
The worker who asks this question has to file a complaint against his/her employer at the Labour Office and submit two copies of his/her work contract there.
If the Labour Office does not solve his/her problem with the employer, he/she can resort to the courts. This worker will not be charged any money for the legal proceedings he/she will start against his/her employer. Sponsorship Law No. 4/2009 makes it necessary for sponsors and foreigners to report to the Authority Concerned within seven days from the entry of the latter.


I used to work for a company, but wanted to move to another one. Having taken approval from my employer, I submitted my sponsorship transfer documents at the Interior Ministry. But the ministry decided to expel me from Qatar. I was already out of Qatar a year and a half ago. Can I get a work visa in Qatar? If yes, how?

Law No. 4/2009 regulates the entry, exit, residence, and sponsorship of foreigners. Article No 40 of the law says that foreigners who get judicial deportation or an order of expulsion cannot return to Qatar without a decision by the Minister. Accordingly, the person who has asked this question can only return to Qatar if he/she gets permission from the Interior Minister to do so.


I work as a driver in a big company. Some time ago, an inflammation occurred in my spine. When this caused led to a partial, but permanent disability, my company administration decided to terminate my contract before giving me my end-of-service rewards. The administration, however, did not give me any compensation for my disability which was brought me by my work. Do I deserve compensation?
Labour Law No. 14/2004 defines work injuries as ones which happen during workers’ company hours. Explained in Table 1, which is attached to the law, the law also says these injuries are ones that might happen to workers on their way to or
from work. By reading Table 1, which explains occupational diseases, we find that spinal injuries are not considered occupational diseases. They are only included in Schedule 2, which determines the level of permanent disability in cases of work accidents and occupational diseases.
For workers to get compensation, their permanent disability has to be not less than 12 percent. Article No. 108 says that if a worker dies while doing his/her work, or receives a work injury, the employer or his representative(s) has to report the accident immediately to police. It also says that the administration has to be taken into consideration when doing this.
The report made by the company about the accident has to include the worker’s name, his/her job, age, address, nationality, and brief information about the accident, such as its circumstances, and the action taken to treat the worker.
Policemen have to conduct the necessary investigation upon receiving the report. They also have to record the testimonies of eyewitnesses, and the employer as well as those of the injured person in case his/her conditions allows for that.
Policemen send a copy of their report to both the Police Department and the employer. Officials at the Police Department have the right to request further investigation into the accident if they deem this necessary.


Having gone back to work after finishing my annual vacation, my employer asked me to take an unpaid vacation for an infinite period, because he had no work for me. I had just renewed my contract a short time after I went back to work. My employer also refuses to transfer my sponsorship. What can I do?
The Labour Law says employers have to give their employees the chance to do the jobs they are hired to do and also provide them with whatever it takes to do these jobs.
In case employees show up at the work place, but are prevented from doing their jobs for problems they do not cause, they have to be paid as normally as they used to. This means that the employer of the worker who asks this question has to pay him/her the full salary as well as give him/her all the rights stated in the contract. Employees have the right to refuse doing jobs that are not stated in their contracts. They can accept to do different jobs only for a limited period of time. Even with this, they have a right to their full salaries.
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~ Questions answered by Advocate Mohammad Ebrahim Al Shaiba of Al Bahar Advocates and Legal Consultants, UAE
I lost my job suddenly and went back home, but my bank filed a case against me in court regarding my credit card bill. The bank is not negotiating to settle the amount reasonably. What can be done to close this issue? I am in the Philippines right now.
I would like to advise the questioner to settle the issue with the bank amicably by way of trying to reschedule the debt and repayment in comfortable instalments or payment of the amount currently required by the bank otherwise the questioner has no choice but to await the court judgment if the bank remits the matter to the competent court.


I worked in a company and ended my relationship with them six months ago. A one-year ban was imposed on me by the Ministry of Labour as per the request of the employer and then I left the country. Presently, the employer is ready to provide me with a letter to submit before the Ministry of Labour to lift such ban, however, some friends told me that the one-year ban can not be lifted at the sponsor’s request, this is applicable to the six months ban only which can be lifted as per the earlier sponsor request. Please advise.
A one-year ban made at the sponsor’s request can be lifted as per the request of such sponsor.


I worked in a company in Dubai for more than two years under a contract for unlimited period. For more than three months, the company has not issued my salaries and I submitted my resignation from work due to non-payment of my salaries. Then I filed complaint before the Ministry of Labour to claim my labour rights and overdue salaries. Presently, the complaint is pending before the Ministry of Labour. My question here is: Can I claim for a compensation for damages .
from the company? I could not pay the rental on time and the owner of building has evicted me from my apartment. Can I transfer to a new company without the consent of the employer? Note that the employer would not provide me with No Objection Certificate to transfer the sponsorship/ Please advise me, thank you
Resignation for non-payment of the worker’s salaries is deemed to be as arbitrary dismissal according to the Cassation Court and the employer shall compensate the worker three salaries maximum based on the court decision. Ask the employer for compensation for the arbitrary dismissal along with the other labour rights and overdue salaries. As for the transfer of sponsorship, if the worker failed to get his salaries more than two months, the Ministry of Labour will transfer his sponsorship without the need for the sponsor’s No Objection Certificate.


A group of my friends and I are setting up a limited liability company. I have some queries in this regard:
A. Is it possible to appoint more than a manager in the company?
B. Is it possible to select non-partner manager?
C. Is it possible to determine a certain period for the employment of such manager? If no period has been determined, what is the legal period for the manager employment in this event?
I would like to clarify to the questioner that article number 235 of the Commercial Companies Law states the following: the limited liability company shall be managed by one manager or more which shall be selected from the partners or otherwise, provided that they shall not exceed five. Managers shall be appointed in the memorandum of association for the company or in a separate contract for specific period or without limitation. The article number 236 of the same law states that if a manager is appointed in memorandum of association without limitation of a specific period, in such an event, such a manager shall remain in the company for the duration of the company unless the memorandum of association provides for the possibility to remove the same.


Someone gave me a cheque for Dh250,000 and bounced. I lodged a complaint with Dubai Police for months with no result. I finally talked to CID (Criminal Investigations Department) who told me to go and wait for the person in front of his office and call them once I see him so they can come and arrest him. The person had actually changed his office address. I managed to get the new address and managed to locate him with no help from the police. I called the police on the spot and they came and arrested him. I went to check with them about the next step and I was sent from one office to another with no result. Ten days later, they told me he was released on bail for 30 days. No one spoke to me during that period. The bail period ended two weeks ago and still no one called me. This has been dragging since March this year. I would like to know what to do next. I want to take this further to at least get the value of the cheque. Can you please advise me what legal route I can take?
I would like to clarify to the questioner that he should have followed the complaint that he had made against the one who issued the cheque and referred to the Public Prosecution, as the latter may have referred the accused to the Criminal Court.
The Public Prosecution informs the victim neither about the status of the case nor the date of referring the case to the competent court as they are not required legally to do so. Therefore, I advise the questioner to approach the Public Prosecution as well as the competent courts in order to make sure of the status of the case.
If the accused has been referred to the Criminal Court, the questioner shall apply for such court and demand his right to the full amount of the cheque or to file a case before the Civil Court if the case before the Criminal Court is over.


My wife has been working in a company for almost two years under a contract for a limited period which expires after almost one year; she is working through my sponsorship and she has a work permit from the ministry. My questions here are: Can my wife leave work immediately or by giving a one-month resignation notice to the company as per the law? If the company did not accept the resignation, will the Ministry of Labour impose a ban on my wife although she is under my sponsorship? What are my wife’s rights with respect to end-of-service gratuity in accordance with the Labour Law?
I would like to tell the questioner that his wife is working on a contract for limited period and if the contract is terminated pre-term, she will lose her labour rights, except the right related to leaves. Also, the wife might be requested to compensate the employer an amount equivalent to a salary for 45 days if the employer proves that he suffered a loss or is affected by such behaviour. Finally, the employer might request the Ministry of Labour to impose a one-year ban on the wife due to this violation even if the wife is not under the company’s sponsorship.


My son has been working in a company for almost one year and he is 18 years old. Six months ago, the company asked him to sign a non-competition certificate all over UAE for three years, thus, he signed the same without reference to me and note that the employment contract signed with the company does not include non-competition clause. My question here is: Is the company entitled by law to ask my son to sign such a clause after his signing an employment contract without such clause? Is this clause binding upon my son who is 18 years old? What is the legal age for work as per the Labour Law?
Article number 127 of the Federal Labour Law number eight of 1980 states the following: “Where the work assigned to a worker allows him to become acquainted with the employer’s client or to become familiar with the secrets of his business, the employer may require him to refrain, after the termination of his contract, from competing with him or participating in any enterprise competing with his own. Such agreement shall be valid only on condition that the worker is at least 21 years of age at the time of its conclusion that the agreement is limited, as regards the time, the place and the nature of the business, to the extent necessary to safeguard the employer’s lawful interest”. Therefore, the competition clause which the son has signed is invalid and not considered on the basis that according to the above article the worker shall be at least 21 years of age. As for the question on the legal age for working in UAE, it is 18.

~ Samahang Pinoy Kawanggawa ~
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