Questions & Answers - Legal Advice Middle East

Execution of a labour judgement to ensure payment of dues

Q: My company is based in Abu Dhabi and some of our employees in Dubai were terminated last year (September, October, November 2018). We employees approached MOHRE and out of 4 times, only 2 times the company PRO attended. And since the company was unwilling to settle the EOSB or even salaries, the matter was transferred to the court. Since May, salaries were not paid to employees. For the first 2-3 persons, the court had released a judgement and no appeal was done by the company. And even after the execution stage, the company is unwilling to pay money to those employees. To certain employees, the company started sending lawyers and delayed hearings and appealed twice thus delaying things. One employee`s health condition was not good and he submitted medically unfit documents to the court but nothing happened till date. The company has a branch in Dubai and these employees are under Dubai. How can the money be collected?

دفع مستحقات الموظف بعد صرفه وقبل إلغاء الإقامة

س: لقد قامت الشركة بفسخ عقد العمل غير المحدد (فصل تعسفي) في شهر يوليو وأعطي لي شهر إنذار ولكن لم آخذ مستحقاتي منذ ذلك الحين لوجود بناتي على مقاعد الدراسة حتى الآن حتى 11/7/2019 والبحث عن وظيفة أخرى في هذة المدة وإقامتي تنتهي في 11/6/2019. قامت الشركه بتعيين موظفين آخرين منذ ذلك الوقت. فوجئت باتصال من الشركة يجبرني على إلغاء الإقامة الآن وإلغاء إقامة الأهل والبنات أولاً وأنهم غير مسؤولين عن تكملة البنات لدراستهم. أرجو الإفادة

Deducting from employee's salary without consent

Q: Hi Hari, Good morning! I have been working for a consultancy firm as a civil engineer/ limited/ 12000 salary. My company is not paying me since December 2018 and deducting 3000 from my salary every month since June 2018. I was on a parenting leave for 10 days in Feb. 2019. After I came back, the company asked for my passport. I refused. They stop my work and payment until the time of this question. Please guide me considering the minimum time required: how will I get my payments and rights? I am waiting for your kind reply, please.

Maintenance bank account fees and charges

Q: Hi Sir, I was terminated from my job last year and I left Dubai without closing my bank account. When I left my account balance was zero. Now the bank is charging me 25 Dirhams minimum on balance and debit interest rate 175 AED. The bank has made a total amount of AED -2500 from the last 15 months. My question is this: if I return on a visit visa to Dubai, will the immigration detain me? Thanks.

Application of the UAE personal status law on deceased expatriates

Q: Hi, I am Professor for Private International Law in Geneva, Switzerland. I was wondering if, assuming a Swiss dies with the last domicile in the UAE, are the UAE courts having jurisdiction based on Article 9 of the federal law of personal status religious court or state court? Many thanks, Kind regards, GPR

Defaulting in Credit Cards payments due to delay or non payment of salaries

Q: Hi Madam, I have a credit card which I fully used it and due to delayed salaries for 3 to 4 months I couldn`t pay on time. And the bank is threatening me to pay the minimum amount otherwise they will file a legal case against me. I am ready to pay when I get my salaries, and also I have some other financial commitments. Is there any solution to get a reasonable time to settle the payment and to stop charging interest on the amount for this time?

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Liability of a special power of attorney holder in the company

Q: Hi, I have been given a special power of attorney by my company owner to represent the company. However, now that the company is not performing well financially and there is some outstanding to be cleared by the company to service providers like Etisalat and a few others as well. In such circumstance when the company is liable to pay the amount and the owner is not coming back from India due to medical reasons, what is my position in all this?

Eligibility of compensation for arbitrary dismissal post renewal

Q: Hi Sir, Good evening. Please, I need your guidance. I have been working in a construction company for 15 years as a civil engineer. My last visa got expired on 25.02.2019 & I had done my medical on 17.02.2019. But meanwhile, I got a termination notice on 20.03.2019 in which I have been given time till 17.04.2019. But meanwhile, my company renewed my visa as well which is valid until 2021. Am I eligible to get a salary until 17.04.2019 only (1 month) or the company has to pay for 3 months as my contract was terminated immediately after renewal? My visa was issued on 17.02.2019 and I got the termination notice on 20.03.2019. Thank you

Claiming deducted salaries from the employer

Q: Good morning, I have been working for a consultancy firm as a civil engineer/ limited/ 12000 salary. My company is not paying me since December 2018 and deducting 3000 from my salary every month since June 2018. I was on a parenting leave for 10 days in Feb. 2019. After I came back, the company asked for my passport. I refused. They stop my work and payment until the time of this question. Please guide me considering the minimum time required: how will I get my payments and rights? I am waiting for your kind reply, please.

What to do if your employer refuses to cancel your employment visa?

Q: Hello Mam, I just want to seek help. I am working in a company for almost 5 years now and decided to join another company. I have already served my notice period and now when I ask them about my cancellation, they started to ignore me. Now I cannot join the new company because my previous company is holding my cancellation. Kindly advise what is the best thing to do?

Cash embezzlement case and its consequences

Q: Dear Sir, One of my friends did cash embezzlement in a company and he returned the full amount also but now the company filed a Tawafuq complaint. What will be the scenarios of the penalty? The passport is with the company and he got terminated. Their Tawafuq hearing is on Saturday. Please advise.

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متعثر بسداد قرض لمؤسسة إماراتية وملاحقته في السعودية

س: كنت قد أخذت قرض في الإمارات من مؤسسة مالية قيمته ٤٧٠٠٠ درهم وغادرت الإمارات. أريد أن أذهب إلى السعودية. هل سيكون هناك منع أو أي ملاحقة هناك لأني أريد أن أسافر للعمل لكي أسدد ديني؟ وللعلم أيضاً، كنت أعمل في السعودية لمدة عام قبل السفر للإمارات.

Termination without notice for making a salary complaint

Q: I worked in a company for more than 5 years. I was terminated (with notice period) after I made a salary complaint. The labour researcher said it might not be arbitrary dismissal because I`m on an unlimited contract, saying any party may terminate the contract as long as there is notice period. So I didn’t push for it. We haven’t settled my gratuity yet, but they want to deduct my lates and absences. As of now, I`m just assuming they want to deduct all my lates and absences from my joining date until my last day. I admit that I have many lates and absences (sick leaves) in my entire employment with them, but they never issued any written warning or imposed any fine as disciplinary actions - they didn’t deduct anything on my salary following every incident. Is it legal for the company to deduct lates and absences on my gratuity? Can they count the lates and absences from my joining date until my last day? Or only for the past few months, or 1 year, or start on my latest renewal date? Thank you.

Liability of the company to pay End of Service

Q: Who is in charge of my End of Service gratuity if the company which is an L.L.C. is not able to pay it because of financial issues?

Possible action for delay in payment of credit card installments

Q: Dear Sir, I have one credit card in a UAE bank from 2015. I was paying the minimum instalment every month but for 5 months, my salary is delayed and I wasn`t able to pay more. The total outstanding is AED 60000. Please let me know what action can the bank take and give me some soloutions. Thanks.

Consequences of a deportation order in the UAE

Q: Hello Madam, My name is M., I was employed in Dubai at one of the construction companies from 2006 to 2008. The days of the recession were hitting Dubai and companies not increasing salaries, due to that, labours made a strike and the company complained to the local authorities. So the authorities kept us in jail for 4 days and deported us from jail to India with taking our eye scan in the jail (we received our full settlement in the jail in front of authorities). I want to know, do I have a travel ban in the UAE? Can I enter the UAE through a visit visa? Can I get a work permit in the UAE?