Q: My company terminated my employment because it was making the position I held redundant. I was advised that in no way was this performance-related but purely a restructuring exercise.  However, within 1 month of leaving the company, they have externally recruited another person to fill my exact position, with the same job title, that they made redundant. Whilst I believe that this is unethical behavior, could anyone tell me if this is legal within the UAE or should I lodge a complaint for unfair dismissal?

Q: Hello Ma'am, My name is H. S. and I am from India. I work in a hotel in Abu Dhabi and I have been to asked recently to leave the company due to the restructure in manning. They told me that I should find another job within the next 2 months and after that, I have to leave the place and my contract will end. I just want to know what are the benefits I am entitled to get before I leave.

Q: Good day, I have a question about my contract being terminated in the UAE. I was verbally informed of my contract being ended due to redundancy on 6th October with no requirement to work the notice period. There is a 2-month notice period in the employment contract. The written notification was only provided on 4th December. Company is refusing to pay gratuity and vacation during notice period with all calculations only being until 6th October. Is this calculation correct? How does the lack of written notification affect this as I would think the notice period should commence when that is received? Secondly, in the redundancy letter which was titled “Notice of redundancy,” it was called a “necessary restructure”. I have since found out that somebody else has been brought into my position but the job title has been changed. All reporting lines and work responsibilities seem to remain the same based on what I have heard from former colleagues. Would this fall under an arbitrary dismissal?

An interview-format article covering the topic of employment termination without a valid reason in the UAE. This is from the legal podcast of lawyer Ludmila Yamalova, the founder of Lawgical with LYLAW. Ludmila discusses the aspects of termination, like notice periods, end of service benefits, arbitrary dismissal, unpaid salaries etc.

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.

Several modifications have been made to the UAE Labor Law 2025 to protect employee rights and guarantee compliance with modern employment practices. In general, understanding UAE labor laws fosters positive employer-employee relations, ensures legal compliance, and helps establish a balanced workplace.

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).

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.

This Decree sets the rules and conditions for the termination of fixed-term (limited) or unlimited (not term-bound) employment contract between employer and worker in the United Arab Emirates.