UAE Clarifies Overtime Rules Under New Labour Regulations

The UAE Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation (MoHRE) announced that employers can ask employees to work overtime, as per the Labour Relations Law and its regulations.

Employers can ask their employees to do overtime work, according to the Labour Relations Law and its executive regulations, however, they need to take into consideration conditions explained in this post. Learn more. #MoHRE pic.twitter.com/crxIXg3Goh

— وزارة الموارد البشرية والتوطين (@MOHRE_UAE) January 26, 2023

However, there are a few conditions on which employers must adhere to:

• Establishments can ask their employees to work overtime as long as it does not exceed two hours a day.
• Overtime work can exceed two hours per day, only if the work is necessary to prevent “any loss or incidents or to eliminate or mitigate its effect”.
• The total number of working hours must not exceed 144 hours, every three weeks.

UAE Working Hours

Aside from this, the MoHRE also specified daily and weekly working hours early this week, including its regulations and work break. These are as follows:

The Regulation of Labour Relations Law specified daily and weekly working hours, its regulations and work break. #MoHRE #UAE pic.twitter.com/BRyPV9Zn7B

— وزارة الموارد البشرية والتوطين (@MOHRE_UAE) January 20, 2023

• Regular working hours are eight hours per day, or 48 hours per week.
• Commuting time from and to the workplace is excluded from these working hours, except in certain cases and within controls specified in the implementing regulations.
• Working hours are specified in the employment contract for non-full-time work patterns.
• Working hours shall not exceed five consecutive hours, without a minimum one-hour break.