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Hi there

I'm a 29 yr old female from Sydney, i've been offered a position in a consulting/administration role for 6000AED per month. The company will cover accommodation in a modern 2 bed 2 bath apartment - share with another female, electricty, water, the usual flights home, medical insurance, transport to & from work on top of the 6000AED. Does this sound like a reasonable deal?

For an admin role that sounds Ok (with all the extras covered too such as your housing. What is the consulting part of your job?

If it is specialised then maybe push this upto 7-8K. Only you will know if it is really worth it. With the 6K you get you will have to get around in the weekend and evenings which means taxis unless you know of someone with a car.

The good news is that most of that 6K will be in your back pocket so you may be able to save some. Depends on how much you like a drink

Do you know where you will be working and living as this will affect your quality of life. A shared apartment in Deira is lot different to a shared apartment in the Marina.

Hope this helps and welcome to the next step. Its a big decision to make moving. I moved from the UK and its the best thing I ever did. Career and lifestyle.

L'clair wrote:The company will cover accommodation in a modern 2 bed 2 bath apartment - share with another female

Location of work and apartment are important. If live in Sharjah and work in Jebel Ali, you'll go mad. Find out and ask here.

Be wary of claims of "modern".

also check the location of the appartment in relation to your work, if they don't provide transport to and from work you could be seriously out of pocket every month

dbxsoul wrote:also check the location of the appartment in relation to your work, if they don't provide transport to and from work you could be seriously out of pocket every month

Seriously out of pocket? Hehehe.

Seriously out of pocket? Hehehe.

hahahaha .... is that a cheque book in your pocket or are you just happy to see me

dbxsoul wrote:

Seriously out of pocket? Hehehe.

hahahaha .... is that a cheque book in your pocket or are you just happy to see me

I'm just happy to see you.

To reduce travel costs, one could use a Toyota Yaris. A Segway doesn't have the range or the a/c.

hahaha.... please.... no introductions to your bank manager friend "hagar the horrible"

Hey thanks everyone for ur comments... u guys don't muck around! I'll be working for a hospital on Oud Metha Rd & living in the Al Karama area. Transport is paid for & apparently it's only about 6kms from home to work? Dodgy? or doable?

do-able. look frankly its not a brilliant salary, but it is a start - see if the position offers scope for advancement once you are here.

one word of caution, with some larger establishements (like the hospitals) the salary is fixed for the period of the contract, so don't expect an increase. make sure the contract states that you are entitled to paid leave etc. if you'd prefer, post the balance of what they are offering you here - or pm one of the regulars. it's always better that the entire "package" is put in context rather than just looking at the bottom line. make sure "medical insurance" is just that, a medical plan such as BUPA, else you are entitled to medical ensurance under a goverment medical plan (this is currently mandatory for all employees) so is not really a benefit by a legal requirement. there has been some talk of the governement scrapping this for expats and legally requiring employers to have a private medical plan in place for employees - there again this is a legal requirement for the employer and is not a benefit in the true scence of the word.

also in the area you mentioned (Oud Metha) there are both governement and a lot of private hospitals. if this is a governement job please note, that you are not then subject to the uae labour law... a different set of conditions and criteria apply (for instance a one year mandatory labour ban - which there is no circumventing unless you are transfering to another government department).

Karama to Oud Metha Rd traffic is dense. It will be a slow trip. Karama accommodation is generally mediocre. Don't expect much and you won't be disappointed. Which hospital?

bonk wrote:Karama to Oud Metha Rd traffic is dense. It will be a slow trip. Karama accommodation is generally mediocre. Don't expect much and you won't be disappointed. Which hospital?

Karama rox. I grew up there and I'm still there.

Hi again

dbxsoul can you explain what a labour ban entails? the role is with the American hospital... i'm at the contract stage now.

The "labour ban" is just that, a mandatory ban enforced through the department of labour on an employee who has just finished, or who has just terminated his/ her contract.

It is a little more complicated that that as it is subject to a number of exclusions and inclusions.

At the moment the labour ban is calculated as 6 months from the date of the cancellation of your contract.

1. a labour ban is not enforceable on any uae national changing positions
2. a one year ban is enforced on expatriate employees of the state/ municipal or government services – no exceptions
3. “Article 128, A non-National worker, who abandons his work without a valid reason before the expiry of his definite term contract, may not, even with the employer's consent, take up other employment until the lapse of one year from the date on which he abandons his work. No other employer may knowingly recruit such worker or keep him in his service before the lapse of such period.”
4. “Article 129, A non-National, who notifies the employer of his desire to terminate his indefinite term contract but abandons his work before the expiry of the statutory period of notice, may not, even with the employer's consent, take up other employment until the lapse of one year from the date on which he abandons his work. No other employer may knowingly recruit such worker or keep him in his service before the lapse of such period.”
5. points 3 and 4 are the crux of the “labour ban” and can above can be waived only if prior authorisation was obtained from the minister of labour based on the consent of the current employer
6. if the employment contract was breached by the employer on the grounds of non-payment or physical assault (article 121) and a formal complaint was lodged by the employee at both the department of labour and the police department (although this is on a case-by-case basis not is not guaranteed)
7. Free Zone employees are not subject to the ban

As you can see it’s a little “grey” as – what you need to remember is that this is the Federal Law, Dubai as well as some of the other emirates, tweak and change it to suit their particular needs. If memory serves me correctly there have been about 5 or 6 changes to this law (by the emirate of Dubai) over the past 6 years. Essentially what is enforced today can be changed overnight! For example, the Federal law currently provides for a one year ban, where in effect Dubai only implements a 6 month ban.

It is also not uncommon to simply pay a “waiver fee” to the department of labour to have the ban overturned – in effect negating the above regulations!!!!!