Q: My ex-employer put a criminal case on me and I was in custody for 3 days, and finally, the prosecutor closed my case saying there's lack of evidence. Now, this employer is taking my case as a reference to spoil my reputation in the market. She is going to all clients telling them I am a criminal and not to talk to me and work with me. She did this when my case was open and even now she continued to do same. I am very disturbed and no one is ready to give me a job because of this. I have proof that she sent emails stating I am a criminal. I want to file a case against her, can I do this as per the UAE law?

Q: Dear Respected Lawyers, I am on management visa from Sharjah whose passport was denied by the employer after completing 13 months of service. They told me passport can't be given until my client in Iraq settles a business transaction dues the company did. Feeling insulted, I resigned on June 20th 2018 and stopped going to the office waiting for my Iraqi client to visit the UAE. Finally, the client came to Dubai on August 23rd and showed my employer his account where the client lost more than USD 700,000 because of the mismanagement of the project by the employer. The employer left the meeting room saying I will never get my passport or visa cancelled. He told if ever I report it to the Labor Department, I will be put into trouble through his contacts with senior police officials. Finally, I filed my labour complaint today for my visa cancellation. Kindly advise whom should I approach at Sharjah Court to file a petition for getting back my passport on an urgent basis. Humbly requesting your valued positive advice and assistance.

Q: I recently ended up my contract with my employer because of a medical grounds. Actually, we don't have medical insurance, we are working 17 hours and I am not getting any assistance from the company. After submitting my resignation letter, my employer accepted it but requested me to leave the country then only after he will proceed with the cancellation. He finally agreed after a long period of negotiation. Now, the employment visa is cancelled and he forwarded me the residence cancellation where it's clearly mentioned that I have until 08 December grace period. I asked him to give me back my passport which he is keeping it since I started working for the company and he refused, saying that only on the 19th Jan in reference to my flight date which is 20th of January. In between, I received an offer with three times the salary I used to get and a lot of benefits including health insurance. As per the labour law, does he have the right to keep hold of my passport even after cancellation of my employment visa?

Q: My employer has my passport, but they will terminate me if I request it back. How do I go about getting it back without suffering financially?

Q: Hi, I am working in a free zone company in Dubai since 2016 as an accountant. Can I claim compensation for self-respect, as my boss insulted me by calling in an animal name in front of all for a mistake which I couldn't bear and don't want to continue with this company anymore?

Q: Dear sir/madam, How can you catch a person who is harassing and lying to you orally and also using abusive words? He does not rely on text, email, or WhatsApp. Audio or video recording is a crime in Dubai though it is for personal safety and is not shared with anyone on social media. If we ask for consent, he will never give so it is a win-win situation for a false person & not for a true person in Dubai, where we can't prove oral communication. This rule is a big win for those who are false orally & ignore you on email & WhatsApp.

Q: Hi, I am on a limited contract of two years with a company and this is the fifth month of my probation period. The employer is always insulting and accusing me of stealing his items from the company which is not true and he is doing the same to some of the employees. The employer made a statement that once he had made a visa for me for two years, he will make sure he torments my life. I don't feel comfortable in the company. Whenever he calls me, he uses animal names instead of my name. Can I resign without any ban or fine?

Q: Good day, I have a sister who is African, and she got a job at a ranch. They made her sign a form stating that she received a loan from the employer. Now, she is being mistreated, overworked, and underpaid. They are threatening that she can't leave and will never be allowed to until her contract is finished. She does not have any money to repay the loan or even pay for her flights back home. Is there a way that she can be deported back home?

An interview-format article covering the topic of filing an employment court case in the UAE. This is from the legal podcast of lawyer Ludmila Yamalova, the founder of Lawgical with LYLAW.

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).