The notice period is a serious matter of concern in the UAE and that is why a lot of people keep on asking questions about it.
Here are some of the most common questions people ask regarding notice period as per labour law in UAE;
- Is notice period an obligation as per UAE labour law?
Notice period, if mentioned in the labour contract, is obligatory. The concerned parties sign the labour contract and when they sign it, it becomes an obligation for both the parties to act according to it. when the person resigns or thinks of resigning from their job, they must keep the notice period in mind. During the resignation, the person must know that if they do not serve their notice period or pay the compensation amount for it, they must first submit a written statement for the reason behind waiving the notice period.
- What is the duration of the notice period?
The minimum time period for the notice period is 30 days or you can say one month. It is to be noted that the parties can agree on increasing the notice period but they cannot reduce it at any cost. If you have agreed upon serving for 2 months in your contract, you will have to do it as per your labour contract. Also read Leave During Notice Period is Not Possible
- What are the consequences of not serving the notice period?
Terminating the contract without serving the notice period may take the person into some serious troubles. In short, if a person doesn’t follow the UAE labour law, they may even get banned from working in UAE for more than a year.
- what is the relation between Limited contracts and notice periods
For the people working on limited contracts, the contract cannot be terminated by the employees on their own. If they do, they may get banned from working in UAE for more than a year. So, people with limited time contracts must first complete their contracts. After the time limit of the contracts ends up, they may set themselves free.
- Does the notice period start right after the resignation?
Yes, the notice period starts right after the employee submits their resignation letter. The resignation of the employee comes into effect right after the submission of the resignation either by a letter or through an email. Note that the reply from the side of the employer is not necessary for the notice period to get started.
- Can anyone force the employee to work beyond their notice period?
Right after the notice period of the employee ends, it is no longer mandatory for the employee to work for the organization. It is illegal for the companies to keep an employee on a job even after the notice period ends.
- Can an employee resign before six months in UAE?
If you are on your probation period in UAE and resign during the probation period, you will automatically get a labour ban comprising of 6 months by the Ministry of Labour. Labour ban means you would not be allowed to work in any company which is registered in UAE for the whole 6 months.
- If an employee doesn’t serve the notice period?
It is not necessary for the person to serve the whole notice period and there is no way a company can force you to work the whole notice period. If you are willing to pay the company, the company should not be raising any objections.
- Can notice period be considered as a legal binding?
The notice period is basically the period which you are required to give in case you opt to resign from the company. The notice period varies from company to company on the basis of agreement. For a person whose contract is silent, they will have to serve for more than one week if they have been employed for a month.
- Can an employee refuse to serve the notice period?
An employee can try and agree to serve a shorter notice period. If an employee doesn’t reach the agreement with the employer and you also refuse to work the notice period, it will be considered as a breach of contract. You better reach an agreement to refuse the agreement.
Employees especially expatriates need to know about the Labour laws in the UAE. This may help the expatriates in building their careers in a way they want while complying with the rules of the state. Breaching the contracts and refusing to act as per the contracts can be really harmful to the people especially expats. This can lead to a labour ban. So, it would be better if you take the help of labour lawyers in Dubai, UAE. Law Firms in Dubai have a better understanding of labour laws which can help you get clarity about all your labour law confusions.
