Q: I sent a formal email asking for 12 days annual leave and it was approved. On my last working day before my annual leave starts, the HR guy asked for me and we sat down and he told me that I am out of balance and that I owe them 14 days. I asked him to show me the annual leave forms that I have signed, and according to what I have signed, I only took 14 days in my second year so far with this employer. My hiring date was in September 2015. He also told me that I have exceeded my balance during the first year and that I have to work until September 2017 with no right to book annual leaves. And that if I resigned or got terminated they are going to deduct those 14 days from my salary. My question is: can my employer do what he has just done, deny me my annual leave at such a short notice, and can he deduct those 14 days from my salary? Is it my fault that they are not organised? And under what circumstances can I sue my employer with regards to the above?

Q: Hi, Can an employer force an employee to take any remaining annual leave days during their notice period, if they prefer not to pay cash?

Q: My employment was terminated with a proper 30-day notice by the company. I have worked 3 years 7 months and 10 days. I took 8 days per year annual leave instead of 30. Now that I am leaving, I wish to be reimbursed the unused leave. How many days unused leave can I claim according to the law? 

س: السلام عليكم ورحمة الله، أعمل في شركة في المنطقة الحرة للمطار - دبي في الإمارات العربية المتحدة، منذ 1 فبراير 2014 بوظيفة مدير إقليمي لمنطقة الوطن العربي. اليوم، خلال زيارة عمل في لبنان، وخلال اجتماعي اليوم 7 نوفمبر ببعض العملاء في لبنان الساعة 12 ظهراً، استلمت ايميل من مديري المباشر المدير العام يخبرني فيه بأن الشركة مضطرة لإنهاء خدماتي. وعليه فإنه ينبغي علي أن أكون في إجازة فوراً حتى استكمال رصيد إجازتي (دون ذكر رصيد أيام الإجازة)، على أن تبدأ معاملات نهاية الخدمة في ديسمبر بعد استكمال الإجازة، مما يعني دمج فترة الإنذار مع الإجازة. وذكر في الإيميل أن هذا القرار هو اقتصادي بحت وليس لأي سبب يتعلق بأدائي شخصياً. اتصلت بالمدير وأكد أن السبب اقتصادي ويتعلق بأداء الشركة ككل، مشيداً بما قدمته وبمهنيتي العالية. أرجو العلم بأنني كنت أبلغت المدير في 1 نوفمبرعن رغبتي في الإجازة السنوية (30 يوم) من تاريخ 1 يناير مع إجازة المدارس لأطفالي. ما هو الموقف القانوني بالنسبة لهذا الاجراء، وهل يدخل ضمن الصرف التعسفي؟ وما هي الأسس التي يترتب عليها احتساب المدفوعات شاملة نهاية الخدمة. وشكراً

Q: Good evening, I have an unlimited contract, and I have received an offer letter from another company. However, my previous employer is holding up my resignation. My next job is urgent, but my company does not want to let me go. They said that I need to render a one-month notice. I plan to tell them that I will use my two years' annual leave to cover the one-month notice period. I do not know what to do. I need to start immediately at my new company, but my previous company does not want to let me go. I will complete my two years and am entitled to take a vacation, but I need to resign urgently.

Q: I was put on garden leave pending investigation from tomorrow, however, I have planned and approved annual leave starting Saturday. Is it legal to go ahead?

Q: Dear Sir/Madam, My notice period falls in the 12th month of my second year of service. So, they have to pay me my annual leave salary, and the same month will be my notice month as I will be resigning. Can they reject paying for annual leave because it falls in the notice month, and they will need me to work during that month for handover?

Q: Hello, I resigned from a free zone company. I had booked two weeks of leave earlier, but when I resigned, they asked me to cancel the approved annual leave to serve the full 30 days in the office. I have been working with this company for over two years, and there is nothing in the contract about canceling leave during the notice period. Is that legal?

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).