Annual Leave
The concept of annual leave refers to paid time off from work awarded by employers (companies) and used by workers (employees) according to their discretion.
If an employee has worked for the company for at least a year, he or she is eligible for 30 days of annual leave. The provisions are laid down in Article 75 of the Employment Law, which states, The employee shall be granted at least one holiday every year of service, which may not be less than:
1. Any employee with over six months of service and less than a year of service is entitled to two days per month.
2. An employee with more than a year's service will be entitled to 30 days per year.
Clearly, every full-time worker under UAE Labour Law has a right to annual leave that is outlined in various UAE Labour Law articles.
When will employees take their annual leave
Article 76 stated: “The employer may at his discretion determine the date for commencement of annual leaves and, when necessary, he may decide to divide the leave in two parts at the most, except in cases of juveniles where vacation may not be divided in parts”.
So as per the law if you are an employee, you can choose when your annual leave will begin. It is possible for your employer (Company) to change or divide your Annual Leave as required by work demands.
What are we entitled to and when will we be paid?
According to Article 80 of the Law, "an employee who wishes to take an annual leave shall be paid his full salary in addition to the wage he is entitled to for the days spent on leave as laid out in this law.".
As soon as an employee has worked for more than one year, he/she should be entitled to annual leave. Employees are entitled to full wages after one year of service before taking their Annual Leave.
There are many companies that violate UAE labor laws by only paying Basic salary. According to UAE labor law, you should also be paid an Annual Salary in addition to your normal (Basic) salary.
It is important to note that a company is not responsible for the cost of air travel for its employees. There is no such provision in UAE law. This is simply a company policy and practice and not a matter of UAE labour law.
How Annual Leave will be calculated if?
1. A holiday falls during annual leave: As per Article 77 of the act, "The calculation of annual leave shall take into account holidays and other days off due to illness which fall within the leave and shall be deemed a part thereof". So, during annual leave, any official or public holidays declared by the government should be included in the leave.
2. Someone got sick during the annual leave: The employee must report to his employer if he becomes ill for reasons other than injury to the workplace within two days at most and the employer must take measures to get him medically examined.
What if an employee delayed the re-joining: According to Article 89, an employee who does not report to duty immediately after the expiration of a vacation is considered absent from work for the period of time, he was absent from duty.
Firing an employee on annual leave: The Company may not terminate the services of an employee on annual leave who works in any state of the United Arab Emirates. The company may be considered arbitrary if it dismisses an employee while he or she is on leave and the employee can take legal action against the company for wrongful dismissal.
Working for another company during annual leave: During your annual leave or vacations, you are not permitted to work for another company. You can be terminated by your company/employer or sponsor if you are caught while working for another company.
Working for the same company during annual leave: According to Ministry of Labour Article 78, if an employee works for the same company during their leave, they will be paid in cash based on their basic salary.
Housing and other allowances during annual leave: Employees receive a basic salary plus the housing allowance, if applicable, and any other allowances during the normal working month, stated in Article 78.
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