Published: Wed 18 May 2016, 12:00 AM
Last updated: Wed 18 May 2016, 10:41 AM
Is it the company's right to determine whether to allow a pregnant employee to combine annual leave, maternity leave and an additional 30 days of unpaid leave? The employee is asking to combine all three types of leave and be gone for 90 days.
It is the right of the employee to seek maternity leave for 45 days with full pay, including the period preceding and the period following confinement.
Further, she is also eligible for 100 consecutive or non-consecutive days of unpaid leave related to maternity provided such leave is confirmed by a medical certificate, in accordance with Article 30 of the Federal Law No. 8 of 1980 regulating Labour Relations (the 'Labour Law') of the UAE which states: "A female worker shall be entitled to maternity leave with full pay for a period of 45 days, including the period preceding and the period following her confinement, on condition that she has been in her employer's service for a continuous period of not less than one year. If she has not completed the aforesaid period of service, she shall be entitled to maternity leave with half pay.
Know the law
On the expiry of maternity leave a female worker may be absent from her work without pay for a maximum period of 100 consecutive or non-consecutive days ... if the illness is confirmed by a medical certificate ... (this) leave shall not be deducted from other period of leave
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On the expiry of her maternity leave she may be absent from work without pay for a maximum period of 100 consecutive or non-consecutive days if the illness is confirmed by a medical certificate issued by the medical service specified by the competent health authority.The leave provided for in the above paragraphs shall not be deducted from other period of leave."
However in terms of annual leave, it is the right of the employer to decide the dates. Article 76 of the Labour Law states: "The employer may fix the date of commencement of annual leave and, if necessary, divide such leave into not more than two periods. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the provision respecting the division of leave shall not apply to leave fixed for young persons."
It is at the discretion of the employer to grant annual leave and unpaid leave with maternity leave.
Labour ban and NOC
I joined a company as accountant on February 9, 2015, with a salary of Dh6,500. After some time, I decided to look for another opening and got a new offer as a finance manager with a salary of 12,000.
I then decided to resign from the company, and they cancelled my visa and labour card on December 6. I handed over the documents to my new company and left Dubai.
The new company started my visa process in February and asked me to submit my NOC because of the 6-month labour ban. I called my former employers, who told me they "cannot" issue the NOC letter.
Is there any legal way around this issue?
It may be noted that, after termination of your previous employment, if a labour ban is already imposed on you not to be employed in the UAE for six months then the same may be lifted based on the salary offered by the prospective employer and your professional qualifications.
The salaries corresponding to one's educational qualifications are prescribed under the provisions of Article 4 of the Ministerial Order No. 1186 of 2010 on "Rules and Conditions of Granting a New Work Permit to an Employee After Termination of the Work Relationship in Order to Move from One Establishment to Another" which states: "As an exception to the provision of the Item No (2) of Article 2 of this Resolution, the Ministry of Labour may issue a work permit to an employee without requiring the two-year period in the event that the employee is starting his new position at the first, second or third professional levels after fulfilling the conditions for joining any of these levels according to the rules in force at the ministry, and provided that his new wage is not less than Dh12,000 at the first professional level, Dh7,000 at the second professional level and Dh5,000 at the third professional level..."
Since you are now offered a salary of Dh12,000 and we presume that you are a graduate and the authorities concerned have duly attested your degree; your prospective employer may lift your labour ban.
Ashish Mehta is the founder and Managing Partner of Ashish Mehta & Associates. He is qualified to practise law in Dubai, the United Kingdom, Singapore and India. Full details of his firm on: www.amalawyers.com. 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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