Today's Edition
SAMI ABDULRAOUF (DUBAI)
His Excellency Dr. Abdulrahman Al Awar, Minister of Human Resources and Emiratisation, issued a decision regulating procedures for individual labour complaints.
According to the decision, any worker, assistant, employer, or anyone entitled to file an individual labour complaint has the right to submit a complaint to the ministry within 30 days if either party violates their obligations under the employment contract, law, executive regulations, or current decisions towards the other party. This should be done through the approved channels as outlined in the procedures issued according to the decision.
The Ministry will take the necessary measures to settle or issue a final decision on the individual labour complaint within a period not exceeding 14 days from the date of filing the complaint. This could include settling the complaint, issuing a final decision, or referring it to the judiciary.
Ministerial Decision No. 782 of 2023 specifies the procedures for individual labour complaints that do not exceed a dispute value of Dh50,000 or those settled amicably. In such cases, the Ministry will issue a decision on the resolution of the individual labour complaint in several situations, including “if the value of the dispute subject to the claim does not exceed Dh50,000 and if an amicable settlement is reached between the parties to the labour complaint, regardless of the claim’s value”.
The decision emphasises that the Ministry’s decision will be certified in the executive format immediately upon issuance, following the established procedures in the judiciary. Any party to the dispute has the right to file a case before the competent appellate court to review the dispute within 15 working days from the date of being notified of the ministry’s decision in the dispute. This action results in the suspension of the execution of the final decision issued by the Ministry until a judgment is issued by the competent court.
Moreover, the decision grants anyone who has received a final decision on the resolution of the labour dispute from the Ministry the right to apply for the cancellation of the original work permit within 60 days from the date of being notified of the ministry’s final decision unless the employment relationship is still ongoing. The Ministry has the right to cancel the work permit if the specified period elapses without recourse to the parties involved.
Additionally, the complainant has the right to withdraw the complaint at any time before the issuance of the final decision. Article 3 of this decision states that if an amicable settlement of an individual labour complaint with a claim value exceeding Dh50,000 proves difficult, the Ministry shall refer the individual labour complaint to the judiciary according to the usual procedures.
According to the decision, the Undersecretary of the Ministry for Human Resources Affairs issues the procedures and required forms for implementing the provisions of this decision, provided they do not conflict with its provisions.
In another context, the Minister of Human Resources and Emiratisation, issued Decision No. 720 of 2023 regarding the preservation of the worker’s dues in the event of their death.
The decision emphasises that the employer must apply to cancel the work permit for the deceased worker through the channels specified by the Ministry. The employer is committed to delivering the worker’s dues to the designated person from his family, as determined by the worker in writing, within a period not exceeding 10 days from the date of the worker’s death or from the date the employer becomes aware of the death.
According to the decision, if the employer is unable to deliver the worker’s dues to his family or those entitled to them after the specified period, the employer must deposit the dues of the deceased worker into the ministry’s trust account, with the Ministry calculating these dues. The decision confirms that the Ministry has the right to administratively suspend the establishment’s file if the employer fails to settle the dues within 10 days from the date of the worker’s death or knowledge thereof. The suspension will continue until the employer provides evidence of settling the dues in accordance with the decision’s provisions.
