Overtime for more than 8 hours work

I am a security guard working for four years in a company. How many hours’ duty is expected of a security guard everyday? If I work 12 hours, how many hours will be my overtime? How do I calculate overtime if my basic salary is Dh1,200 for 26 days/month? Do I have to sign any new contract if my salary is increased?

The maximum working hours for employees in the UAE has been fixed at eight hours per day or 48 hours per week under the Federal Law No. 8 of 1980 on Labour Relations. However, for certain vocations and areas of work, including those of security guards, the working hours may be extended up to nine hours for each day in accordance with Article 65 of Federal Law No. 8 of 1980 which states: “The maximum normal hours of work of adult workers shall be eight a day or 48 a week. The hours of work may be increased to nine hours a day in commercial establishments, hotels and cafes and of guard duties and any other operations where such increase is authorised by order of the Minister of Labour and Social Affairs. The daily hours of work may be reduced in the case of arduous or unhealthy operations by order of the Minister of Labour and Social Affairs.

The normal hours of work shall be reduced by two during the holy month of Ramadan.

The periods spent by a worker in travelling between his home and place of work shall not be included in his hours of work.”

In the event the employee is required to work overtime, it should not be more than two hours on a given day in accordance with Article 69 of the Federal Law No 8 of 1980, which states: “The number of actual hours of overtime shall not exceed two a day, unless work is necessary to prevent the occurrence of substantial loss or a serious accident or to eliminate or alleviate its consequences.”

Considering your question, you should be entitled to payment for 3 hours of overtime, on a given day where you are working for 12 hours. Therein, a maximum of nine hours of work should comprise your regular working hours and the remaining 3 hours as overtime.

Article 67 of the aforementioned law states “Where the circumstances of work require a worker to work more than the normal number of hours any period worked in excess shall be treated as overtime, for which the worker shall receive the remuneration equal to that corresponding to his normal hours of work, plus a supplement of at least 25 per cent of the remuneration.”

Further Article 68 of the aforesaid law states “Where the circumstances of the work require a worker to work overtime between 9pm and 4am he shall be entitled in respect of such overtime to the remuneration stipulated for his normal hours of work, plus a supplement of at least 50 per cent of the remuneration.”

The provision therefore, implies the following formula for calculation of overtime work:

Total remuneration for overtime = Remuneration for overtime + 25% of such remuneration (or 50% (if overtime is between 9pm and 4am)

The remuneration for overtime shall be calculated on the basis of your hourly payment corresponding to the basic salary calculated on the basis of a 30-day month only pursuant to Article 8 of the Federal Law No 8 of 1980.

Your salary for each hour of work on a 9-hour work day, shall be Dh4.44/-. The amount of your overtime for each day shall roughly amount to the following calculation:

Overtime payment for each day = Dh4.44 x [hours of overtime work] + 25% or 50% (as applicable) of Dh4.44 x hours of overtime work

And, at the end of the month, such amount multiplied to the number of days on which overtime work was undertaken, shall give the total overtime remuneration for the month.

The aforementioned Federal Law is silent on the question as to whether the employer and the employee should sign a new contract in case the salary of the employee is increased during the period of the employment contract. However the employer should notify the employee of such increase in salary, in writing.

I have been with a Dubai-based company for 11 months. Recently, I had a backbone disc injury and had to undergo five days’ physiotherapy and I was advised to take rest for another 10 days at least. So I requested the management of my company to grant me five days medical leave and produced the doctor’s letter. But they denied me leave saying they were short of staff. Is this acceptable?

As per the prevailing laws, an employee who has completed three months of employment subsequent to his probation period in the continuous service of the employer shall be entitled to avail sick leave on account of his sickness in accordance with Article 83 of the Federal Law No 8 of 1980 which states:

“1. The worker shall not be entitled to any paid sick leave during the probation period.

2. If the worker completed more than three months after the probation period in the continuous service of the employer and falls ill, he shall be entitled to sick leave not exceeding 90 days whether continuous or otherwise, in respect of every year of service. Such leave shall be calculated as follows:

a) The first 15 days with full pay, b) The next 30 days with half pay and c) Any subsequent periods without pay.”

You may avail medical leave by reporting to your employer who may then verify your condition before granting you leave for such sickness in accordance with Article 82 of the Federal Law No 8 of 1980 which states “Where a worker contracts an illness otherwise than as a result of an employment injury, he shall report his illness within a maximum of two days and the employer shall thereupon take the necessary steps to have him medically examined immediately for the purpose of verifying his illness.”

It is assumed that you had complied with the provisions of the aforesaid law. Therefore your employer may not have a bona-fide reason to refuse you medical leave due to shortage of staff.

Ashish Mehta, LLB, F.I.C.A., M.C.I.T., M.C.I.Arb., is the founder and Managing Partner of Ashish Mehta & Associates, a legal consultancy firm in Dubai. He also practises in India, United Kingdom and Singapore. He has worked with international and commercial legal procedures, providing analysis and counselling on complex legal documents and policies such as commercial transactions, securitisation, real estate acquisitions, financial restructuring for distressed assets, mergers and acquisitions, arbitration and litigation issues. Readers may e-mail their questions to: news@khaleejtimes.com or send them to Legal View, Khaleej Times, PO Box 11243, Dubai.

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