Dubai Forums Dubai Expat Forums Working in Dubai

I have been working in the UAE for a British based service company over the past 10 years. The company has regional office within the UAE which I report to directly. My visa and labour card is organised and registered with an agency in Dubai where I am based. I work a 28 day rotation offshore to and from the UK.
Recently I decided to move on and enquired about my gratuity entitlement. The company has told me that I am not entitled to gratuity which I find rather odd, as the UAE Labour Law clearly states the criteria for entitlement. I have researched the labour law and cannot and see a reason why I am not entitled to the gratuity payment. The only downfall I can see is that my salary is paid from and into a UK bank account.
My contract of employment for my position is issued from the UK although I have a different contract for the position in the UAE, this is obviously to comply with the local labour law. Both contracts have different salary rates, the UAE contract is the minimum allowable amount for someone working in the UAE.
If my company continues to refuses to honour the gratuity payment I will have no alternative to file my case in the Ministry of Labour.
My questions are. Will my gratuity calculation be based on the UK salary day rate or the UAE contract rate? Does anyone know a contact name, an address or email address where I can file my case with the Ministry of Labour? This I have found very difficult to find. I may also need a local solicitor for representation if I end up back in the UK. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Hopefully our resident expert, bonk, will see this. He is quite knowledgeable on these matters.

Were you "seconded" to Dubai?

Hi Jobsworth - sorry to hear this, but it sounds like what happened to my FIL about a decade ago - he worked for a UK based company, which stated that because they contributed to his pension through the UK system, that he wasn't entitled to a locally based gratuity.

Perhaps this is the reason why they won't give you one - hope it gives you some insight.

Good luck in getting what you're owed.

Bora Bora wrote:Hopefully our resident expert, bonk, will see this. He is quite knowledgeable on these matters.

I think you are being way too generous but thanks .

Yes, the principle behind UAE gratuity payments is to make up for no pension for expat workers. But as best I can tell, the UAE labour law doesn't specifically say if pension fund contributions are being made overseas then you don't get a gratuity. Anyway, I would have thought UAE labour law only covers what happens in the UAE irrespective of whether or not you are contributing to a pension fund overseas, government or private.

If you're doing a 28 day rotation between UAE and UK, it's possible that you are resident for tax in the UK, and that might mean you are not a UAE resident and therefore not covered by UAE labour law. There are also some categories of employment that are not covered by the labour law, I can't remember which, but if you have been looking at a copy, the excluded categories are at the beginning somewhere.

Here's contact details for the Ministry of Labour. They have a helpline you could contact to at least ask about gratuity, and about filing a case.

http://www.dubaifaqs.com/ministry-of-labour-uae.php

If you do get gratuity, I think it's based on your basic salary received, exclusive of allowances.

Hi guys. Thanks for the information you have supplied.
I have heard about the gratuity being pension related, but as I do not get paid UK pension fund contributions from my company this would not come into play. If I were to be paid the pension contributions in the UK it is automatically stopped by our company, as they state I am not entitled to contributions while working overseas, "other work colleges have complained about theirs being stopped" even if I am still a UK resident paying UK tax, which I am.
I agree that the "UAE labour law only covers what happens in the UAE" and I am sure that I am entitled to at least the basic of what is my UAE contract.
Looks like I will have to file my case and fight.

Do you have a "local" contract, that is, a contract signed by a representative from a Dubai company? If so, does it state that the contract is governed under the laws of the UAE? Generally contracts should have a clause as to what law would apply (UAE or UK) with regard to any disputes. If so, and based on what you say, UAE law should dictate, hence end of service gratuity as per the law. Go back and read your contract.

Good luck to you.