Q: Can an employer put a cap on leave accrual in the UAE, as my company put a cap of 35 days maximum? Is it legal? What is the normal cap in the UAE?

Q: Dear Madam. My JAFZA Employment Contract is an unlimited free zone contract. My services have been arbitrarily terminated on 09 Dec. 2018, and after having served the 90 days paid notice period, my tenure ended on 08 March 2019. I am now in the process of finalizing my end of service benefits, and there is a clarification required in regards to the basis of computation of the benefits. Queries are as under. Leave pay due to termination: I have 25 days unutilized leave which I intend to encash. What is the basis of computing the value of this leave pay? Would it be on the basis of: a.) gross monthly salary (which includes the latest basic salary + housing allowance + transport allowances) b.) or on the basis of latest basic salary + housing allowance c.) or on the basis of just the latest basic salary? Could you please clarify and provide me with the correct latest updated UAE Labor Law article ref. # 79 for the correct interpretation of the basis of calculation for the above leave pay.

Q: I am aware that under the federal law no.8 of 1980, you can claim for normal wage+ allowance in lieu of leave if you work during your annual leave and it is not carried forward to the next year. However, I would like to know what the success rate of this claim is, in person, if I contest it in the Dubai Courts.

Q: My friend has a contract which states that she gets 30 days' annual "paid leave" after every 12 months of a completed work year. With approved and signed leave, she went on leave, and on return, the company refused to pay her 30 days' salary whilst she was on leave. What can be done?

Q: My employee took a 1 month leave in the 7th month of the first year despite a clause in the contract that the first one year continuous leave cannot be taken. So during that time, the employee had agreed that she does not want to get leave salary for that month. However, after she resigned and the labour contract has been cancelled after a 2-year contract, she has presently included that 1st year leave salary in her pending dues. Am I liable to give that?

Q: Hi, Good day. I just want to ask, the employee has more than 30 days of annual leave balance. But the employer is saying that the employee cannot take more than 30 calendar days of leave. Is it possible, what article it is mentioned in UAE labour law? Please advise. Thanks & Regards, J.

Q: Dear Madam, We have the case of one employee who joined the company on 12 Dec 2018. His leave eligibility is 22 working days per year. He has not consumed any annual leave and is leaving the company on 31st May 2021 (after 2 years and 5 months+). Are we supposed to encash all the annual leave he has accrued from his joining till the end of May 2021? Our company has a policy of transferring only 10 days from Dec of each year to the next year. Any leave above this is forfeited. If this is the case, he will carry only 10 days from Dec 2020 to Jan 2021. Please advise what the UAE LL states about it. Thanks.

س: طبقًا لقانون العمل الإماراتي، هل يحق للعامل المطالبة بالمستحقات الخاصة بالإجازة السنوية المتراكمة لأكثر من ثلاث سنوات؟

Q: Good morning attorney. I've been working for more than 1 year in the company and I used 1 month of annual vacation. Am I entitled to a 1-month salary on that annual vacation? Thank you

The UAE has adopted a major reform in its legislative system that brought about 40 new laws and amendments to the company law, criminal law, personal status, among others. The amendments aim to develop the legislative structure in various sectors, the labor law being one of these, was the most recent. We try in this article to shed light on the changes introduced with the new labor law and their significance on both, the employer and employee.

The provisions of this Law, known as "UAE Labour Law", govern the relationship between employers and employees and other labour matters in the United Arab Emirates. There are special labour related regulations applicable in some of the free zones in the UAE.

The provisions of this Decree-Law, known as "New UAE Labor Law", govern labour relations in the private sector of the United Arab Emirates. The New Labor Law repeals the previous UAE Labor Law (Federal Law No. (8) of 1980).