UAE to cover coronavirus treatment cost of workers

Providing protection to workers' health is one of the top priorities of the UAE government.

The UAE government will cover the diagnostic and treatment costs of workers suffering from coronavirus, and the Emirates Red Crescent (ERC) announced that it will fully support people infected with the virus and their families, as well as the families of those who died of the disease, pointed out Dr Amna Al Dahhak Al Shamsi, official spokesperson for the UAE government, on Monday during a regular briefing on Covid-19 update.

The government is keen to offer the workers testing, treatment and basic health services, and obligating companies and business owners to provide them with health insurance and cover diagnosis and treatment expenses.

Dr Al Shamsi affirmed that when it was seen that a large segment of labourers was affected by the precautionary measures, dozens of federal and local government departments were keen to mitigate the repercussions and provide them with all kinds of material support and care.

These departments launched awareness campaigns that included lectures and workshops in different languages on the prevention of the coronavirus, methods of transmission and how to protect themselves and other health advice.

Awareness leaflets were also distributed to workers and educational films in several languages were shown on how to comply with health procedures and public health rules while emphasising the importance of hygiene and sterilisation.

The precautionary measures required restrictions on the movement of some workers. The government and charitable organisations joined hands to ensure the living and health requirements at their places of residence, including distributing hundreds of sterilisers and face masks, as well as food supplies and integrated food bags.

The authorities were also keen to carry out inspection visits to the residential complexes of workers and to ensure their commitment to complying with the precautionary measures, the cleanliness and sterilisation of cooking places and dining halls. They will also inspect shops and clinics frequented by the workers, as well as the buses used to take them to their work sites.

Dr Al Shamsi explained that the UAE is one of the first Arab countries to implement a series of regulatory measures to manage the relationship between employers and workers to safeguard the rights of both parties, following the impact of the crisis. She noted that the UAE law requires employers to pay the dues to the terminated employees and buy their return tickets.