“UAE: Ministry issues clarification over employment duration in contracts”

The Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation (Mohre) in the UAE has issued a clarification regarding the fixed-term contracts between employers and workers.

The new UAE labour law requires all private sector employers to convert their employees’ unlimited contracts to fixed-term contracts. The Ministry has confirmed that it does not specify an exact duration for the employment relationship between the parties, allowing them to negotiate terms that suit their needs.

Employers must renew the work permit when it expires based on the type of work permit that can be renewed, and there is no need to print a new employment contract if the existing contract is still valid and unchanged.

…Moreover, the updated labour law sets out nine specific scenarios under which an employment contract may be terminated…

In another crucial development, the Ministry addressed concerns about unjust and arbitrary dismissals.

The new regulations firmly state that terminating a worker's service would be considered unjust or arbitrary if it's due to the worker filing a serious complaint to the Ministry or initiating a lawsuit against the employer that is proven to be true...