Maternity Leave

Maternity Leave

I work in a private company here. I am currently pregnant and want to travel to Canada for my delivery as I hold an immigrant Canadian card. I asked my employer of the possibility of allowing me to take unpaid leave before my maternity to travel. As you know, airlines will allow me to travel only till my 8th month. The management is still deciding on that subject. What are my rights? Please, advise.

Maternity leave refers to taking time off after the birth. Article 30 of the UAE Labour Law provides 45 days maternity leave with full pay which includes the time before and after delivery provided her employment duration should not be less than a year. However, if the employment duration is less than a year, she is entitled to the same maternity leave with half pay.

Article 30 also states that: “A working woman, on the expiry of the maternity leave, may discontinue work without pay for a maximum period of 100 consecutive or intermittent days if such absence is due to illness which does not enable her to resume work. Such illness shall be evidenced by a medical certificate issued by a medical authority attested by the competent health authority or endorsed by such authorities to the effect that the illness resulted from pregnancy or delivery. Leave provided for in the preceding two paragraphs shall not be computed as part of other leaves.”

Keeping in view the above mentioned Law, you have a right to 45 days of maternity leave. However, accepting leave for a longer time than provided in Article 30 is at the sole discretion of your company management.

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Criminal case if cheque bounces

I lent Dh130,000 to one of my friends in 2008 and he gave me a blank cheque as security. After one year, when I asked for my money as agreed upon, he refused, claiming that he encountered some loss in his business. I gave him one more year but in vain. Can I bank the cheque and file a criminal case against him? Are there time restrictions to file the case? How can I bring my friend to court since I relocated to Saudi Arabia last year?

Three different legal issues have been raised in this question:

First, handing over a blank cheque as security and filing a criminal case. Under the UAE laws, a cheque does not have any link with the underlying transaction. Thus, when the cheque bounces, you may file a criminal case against your friend for dishonoured cheque crime.

It is worth noting that giving a blank cheque and filling the detail or date therein by someone else does not affect its validity as long as the signature is genuine. According to a Federal Supreme Court ruling, just handing over a cheque and its bouncing due to insufficient fund constitute the crime of dishonouring cheque. Therefore, you may fill the blank part of the cheque and may cash it. In case of bouncing, you may file a criminal case.

Secondly, it is paramount to determine the applicable time-bar in relation to the claim before commencing it. Since the cheque has two different statuses, it gives you two different rights. One, you may file a criminal case for the crime of the dishonoured cheque, and secondly you may file a civil case for the value of the cheque. As per the UAE law, there is a different time-bar for filing a criminal case and civil case in case of cheques. The criminal case must be filed within five years from the date of bouncing of the cheque as per Article 20 of Criminal Procedures Code of the UAE, Federal Law No 35 of 1992. However, you have 15 years to file a civil case against your friend for the amount of the cheque as per Article 473 UAE Civil Code. Lastly, the only way to file a case from Saudi Arabia is to give duly attested power of attorney to a lawyer in the UAE.

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Labour ban

I have been working with a chemical company in Jebel Ali outside the free zone since August 2010 on a limited contract of three years. Now I have a good offer from a lubricant company at the Jebel Ali Free Zone. As per my contract, if I wish to terminate my contract I have to give one month notice, but the general manager asked me to give 45 days notice. Is it right? My new employer wants me to join as soon as possible. Will I be liable for a labour ban if I move from a no-free zone to a free zone? Do I have to pay for my visa expenses for the remaining months?

Since you have not completed two years with your current employer, a ban for the period of six months will be automatically imposed on you by the Ministry of Labour. However, you may join the new company without a ban if you fall in any of the following categories as mentioned in the Cabinet Resolution No 25 of 2010 regarding internal work permit at the Ministry of Labour:

In order to remove the ban, an employee must prove qualifications by presenting a duly attested educational certificate as mentioned herein (i) If an employee holds a university degree (master), and earns a minimum of Dh12,000 per month; (ii) If an employee holds a diploma (post secondary) and earns a minimum of Dh7,000 per month; and (iii) If an employee has passed high school and earns a minimum of Dh5,000 per month.

The contract is terminated due to the employer’s violation of legal and labour obligations towards the worker, or in case the worker has no role in terminating the work relationship.

The employee is transferred to another company the employer owns or has shares in.