"Employees who are forced by their sponsors to take up responsibilities that fall outside the labour contracts, can seek help of the ministry, which will cancel their sponsorships and issue a temporary work permit till they find a permanent job according to their qualifications," the source said.

He clarified that for those employees who are not included in the exempted categories, the ministry will issue a temporary six-month work permit, provided he/she manages to get a new job.

The employee should then pursue the regular procedures for obtaining a new employment visa, said the source. He added that on humanitarian grounds, the ministry considers lifting of the six-month-ban incurred due to visa cancellation in many labour disputes.

The official's comment came after the ministry granted a temporary work permit to a 25-year-old Ethiopian woman on Sunday. The employee had lodged a complaint against her ex-sponsor for subjecting her to do extra work apart from the job agreed upon in the labour contract.

Though her employment visa was for the post of a saleswoman, she was forced to work as a housemaid at her sponsor's house.  The sponsor also refused to pay her back dues, and threatened to cancel her sponsorship. As per the labour contract, she was supposed to get Dh 1,000 per month but instead she has been paid only Dh 650 monthly.

The ministry referred the case to the court and agreed to grant the woman a temporary work permit, provided that she got a new sponsor. The ministry also exempted her from the six-month-ban.