UAE Private Sector Employees Must Take Break After Five Consecutive Hours
UAE private sector employees are entitled to take one or more breaks, if he or she works for five consecutive hours. These breaks must not be less than one hour, and are not calculated within the working hours, according to the official UAE government website.
On Thursday, the UAE Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation (MoHRE) announced that employers can ask employees to work overtime, as per the Labour Relations Law and its regulations.
However, there are a few conditions on which employers must adhere to:
- Establishments can ask their employees to work overtime as long as it does not exceed two hours a day.
- Overtime work can exceed two hours per day, only if the work is necessary to prevent “any loss or incidents or to eliminate or mitigate its effect”.
- The total number of working hours must not exceed 144 hours, every three weeks.
In addition, the employee will be entitled to a pay equal to normal working hours’ remuneration (which is based on basic salary) plus 25 percent of that pay, the UAE website reads, adding that it could increase to 50 percent if overtime is done between 10 PM and 4 AM. This rule does not apply on workers who work on a shift basis.
Moreover, if the circumstances require the employee to work on his or her off-day, as specified in the labour contract, or work regulations, then the employee will be entitled to a substitute rest day, or to a pay equal to normal working hours’ remuneration (which is based on basic salary) plus 50 percent of that pay.
UAE working hours for private sector employees
Aside from this, the MoHRE also specified daily and weekly working hours early this week, including its regulations and work break. These are as follows:
- Regular working hours are eight hours per day, or 48 hours per week.
- Commuting time from and to the workplace is excluded from these working hours, except in certain cases and within controls specified in the implementing regulations.
- Working hours are specified in the employment contract for non full-time work patterns.
- Working hours shall not exceed five consecutive hours, without a minimum one-hour break.