I am a doctor working in a clinic in Dubai for 13 months. I am on an unlimited labour contract. Due to urgent personal matters I have to resign and go to my home country. I do not intend to work in any other clinic here. Will a labour ban be imposed on me? If so, for how long? Can it be lifted? Do I have to compensate my employer for the expenses incurred by the clinic on my visa, licence and labour card? My employer insists that I have to or my resignation will not be accepted. My tenancy contract comes up for renewal in six months. If I want to vacate the residence prematurely, what is the notice period I have to give the landlord? Do I have to pay an extra amount as compensation for breaking the tenancy contract?
In the questioner’s case, if he wants to terminate the labour contract and resign, the Ministry of Labour will impose a six-month ban. I advise the questioner to give the clinic notice as agreed to in the labour contract and work during the notice period if the clinic does not prevent him from doing so. By doing this, the questioner will avoid a one-year ban. Moreover, the six-month ban could be lifted if the questioner obtains a new job with a salary not less than Dh12,000 a month. As for the expenses incurred by the clinic on the questioner, he is not obliged to compensate the clinic for the expenses as the employer is obliged to pay for such expenses. An employee’s resignation does not require approval from the employer as per UAE labour law. As for the tenancy contract, the questioner should write a letter to the landlord informing him that he will vacate the premises at the end of the contract, or explain to him that the questioner has to leave for his home country and wants to vacate the premises before the contract expires. In this case, the questioner may have to give the landlord part of the annual rent since he is terminating the tenancy contract prematurely.
Resignation versus termination
I am based in Dubai and have been working in a company for one-and-a-half year on a two-year limited contract. I expect my services to be terminated with immediate effect. I want to know if Article 120 of the labour law allows an employer to terminate an employee’s services for reporting late to work a few times in a month. I was issued a letter deducting five days salary for reporting late; the letter mentioned that severe disciplinary action will be taken the next time I reported late, but there was no indication that it was a warning of termination as is required under the fifth point in Article 120. Can my employer terminate my services with immediate effect on the basis of my reporting late? I have already resigned and gave my employer a month’s notice, but my employer wants to terminate me immediately. Will my resignation be acceptable under the law or will the termination letter supersede it? If my services are terminated with immediate effect, how long can I can stay in the UAE? Will I receive my gratuity? My employer also holds my passport and original educational certificates.
If the questioner has submitted his resignation before the employer issued the letter of termination, the law will consider his resignation effective. The company cannot then terminate the questioner’s service even if it issues a letter with an earlier date. This is because the resignation takes effect once the relevant person is informed while the company has not informed the questioner about termination. As for the reference to Article No 120, the fifth point stipulates that the employer should have subjected the employee to a written investigation as well as warned him that he will be dismissed if such behaviour continues. This is the stipulation for the application of Article No. 120. As for the question about end-of-service gratuity, the questioner herein has violated the Labour Law when he submitted the resignation, since his contract was for limited period. In this case, the questioner will be requested to compensate the employer. If there is no amicable agreement with the employer regarding the questioner passport and original certificate and other right the questioner shall ask the labour ministry to refer the case to the competent court, but I advise the questioner to settle the said dispute amicably with the employer to avoid one-year ban in case the employer request for that from the labour ministry. Finally in the event of referring the dispute to the competent court, the questioner will not be forced to leave the country until he obtains his right in full as per the UAE Labour law.
Ask the Law questions are answered by Advocate Mohammad Ebrahim Al Shaiba of Al Shaiba Advocates and Legal Consultants.
— Compiled by Bassam Za’za’, Legal and Court Correspondent
