Private sector employees should get Saturday off: FNC members

UAE private sector workers should be given Saturday as a holiday on par with civil servants to encourage Emiratis to get jobs in that sector to tackle unemployment among nationals, according to key members in the Federal National Council (FNC), the country’s parliament. They said the proposed day off is just part of a set of incentives that should be introduced by the private sector to woo  Emirati employees, including better wages, more benefits, increased holidays and improved work environment. FNC figures, published by the Dubai-based Arabic language daily Emarat Al Youm, showed nearly 40,000 Emiratis are jobless, accounting for 13 per cent of the total national workforce of around 300,000. “Private sector workers must be given Saturday as a holiday as in European countries in return for an extra hour’s work on week days,” said Salim Al Amri, head of the FNC’s labour and social affairs committee. “This proposal should be taken into consideration as an incentive for Emiratis seeking to work in the private sector, where the existing incentives are low. It could be enforced on companies which have more than 100 employees in the first stage before it can be implemented throughout the UAE at a later stage, say six months,” said Al Amri. According to another FNC member, most Emiratis who get jobs in private sector firms quit later to seek employment in the more attractive public sector. “This is because the private sector offers lower salaries, shorter holidays and less job benefits…as soon as they get a chance in the public sector, they quit their job,” said Hamad Al Rahoumi, head of the FNC’s job Emiratisation panel. Another FNC official said he believes private sector firms should play a greater role in employing nationals and tackling unemployment on the grounds they are making high profits and are exempt from income tax. “At the same time, there should be a set of incentives to lure Emiratis into the private sector…we must begin with increasing holidays by making Saturday as a day off…if this is not possible, then they can work on Saturday and get compensated for a day’s work,” said Ahmed  Al Amash, head of the FNC’s utilities committee. Emirates24/7