The Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) is an independent jurisdiction with its own legal framework, including specific regulations concerning employee leave entitlements. This article provides a detailed overview of the various types of leave under DIFC Employment Law.
Sick Leave
The DIFC Employment Law provides complete aid and help for employees who are unwell and sick, including while providing them with entitlements. These benefits give an assurance to the employees that they will not be removed from their job and can pay complete attention to their health. As it is with the case of duration of sick leave in DIFC, it wholly depends upon the length of the employees continued service with the employer and in the situation of an employee completing less than three months of continuous service they would be granted a 5 working day sick leave per year. For the situation of an employee completing more than 3 months or more of continuous service their sick leave would be 60 working days per year.
Disambiguation: This article discusses DIFC employment laws. For ADGM labour laws, please refer to ADGM Employment Laws. For UAE Federal labour laws, please refer to UAE Federal Employment Laws.
To ensure their sick leave is granted, the employer is notified of it as soon as possible and provides them with a medical certificate. On sick leave, the employee will be receiving full salary for the first 10 working days and post the completion of the initial 10 days the employee could then be given 50% of their income for the next 30 working days. In the case of sick leave extending more than 40 working days the employees would not be given any salary for the remaining time off.
Maternity & Paternity Leave
Under the DIFC Law, the female employees are granted a minimum of 65 consecutive days of leave, and this leave could be taken post or pre-birth of their child. It is the duty of the employee, availing the paternity leave that they provide the employer with notice of at least 30 days prior of their leave. During maternity leave the female employees would be entitled to full pay for the beginning 33 days and for the remaining 32 days the employee would be entitled for half pay, wherein the salary of the mother will be covered by DIFC. For the employee to be eligible it is important to note that they have completed more than a continuous year of service with their company. In a situation where the employee has only served the company/employer for less than a year, they would not be eligible for any maternity pay, only granted leave.
While maternity leave is a must, the DIFC also recognizes the cruciality of the paternity leave and the employee would be granted 5 consecutive working days of leave, which could be taken within 6 months of the child being born. Paternity leave, similar to maternity must be informed 30 days prior to the employer.
If any unfortunate crisis happens, and a still birth has taken place post 24 weeks of pregnancy or if the child dies during the time of birth or shortly post that, the mother will still be eligible for maternity leave. This leave is given for the mother to heal physically and to also try to recover from the mental trauma & emotional pain of the pregnancy.
Public Holidays & Annual Leave
Public Holidays are the leaves recognized by the Government and employees are entitled to a day off or sometimes the public holiday duration could be extended, with complete pay in cases like these.
As mentioned in the DIFC Law, employees who have served less than 3 years of service would be entitled to 20 working days of annual leave and for employees who served 3 or more years of service it would be 25 working days. Employees who have been with an employer for a longer period would be permitted to take more annual leave.
Military Service Leave
Employees called upon for military service are granted a leave of absence for now. This provision applies for full-time and part-time employees too, and under this type of leave the employee cannot be terminated. During the stint of the military service the employees are entitled to receive their normal salary and benefits, and if in any case, the employee is entitled to any bonuses or extra pay, it would be paid. To be able to qualify for military service leave, the employee must submit valid proof and documents required along with the start, end date of the service, and even a copy from the commanding officer. The employee must return to the job straightaway post the military duty, unless any disability occurred during the service, then a further extension to recover and heal would be provided to the employee.
If any situation arose wherein the employer fails to comply with the rules of the military service, then the employee could file a complaint with the DIFC Employment Tribunal.
Hajj and Umrah Leave
Religious pilgrims that Muslims undertake to the holy cities in Saudi Arabia, Mecca and Medina, these hold a huge sentiment and value in the Islamic faith and those who follow that path, wish to go there at least once in their lifetime.
According to the DIFC Employment Law, whichever employee completes one year of continuous service with their employer will be entitled to a maximum of 10 days of leave for this religious visit, in addition to their annual leave entitlement. To avail this the employer should be informed well beforehand, preferably 30 days prior notice would be better. The employer could also ask the employee to provide necessary proof and documentation of the travel and pilgrimage.
In situations wherein the employee has not completed a consecutive 1 year of service, they could still request a leave, but it would be completely upon the employer to grant it or not.
Jury Duty Leave
Jury Duty is when employees are required to serve as a part of the legal system, and they would be eligible for leave without pay in a situation like this. To avail jury duty, leave to the employer, the employee must send their copy of jury duty summons, as it will also grant the employer to provide for necessary arrangements in the employee’s absence.
Employees will not be receiving their pay from the employer; however, they may be compensated by the court. Courts, in some instances, could provide with a daily allowance or reimburse them for any expense that incurred during their tenure at the court. The jury duty leave could be taken by an Emirati and expatriate employees.
Study & Training Leave
The DIFC Employment Law provides the employees for study and training leave, however they should be qualified to a leave of criteria, to begin with, the employee must have completed 6 months of continuous service with the employer. This assures and guarantees that the employee has shown a certain level of commitment and dedication to the work before their leave is granted for educational purposes. The employee must also notify the employer well ahead of time, possibly at least 30 days in advance; beyond this it solely depends on the employer to give permission or cancel it.
Compassionate Leave
Compassionate Leave in DIFC is granted to employees who experience a personal or family emergency which would require their support right away. This could consist of the loss of a loved one, serious illness or injury to an immediate relative, or any further urgent requirement. In any unfortunate circumstances like this, employees would be granted a paid 3 working days, nevertheless, the employers have a say in situations like these and could decide to extend their support and help to the employees, by granting more leaves or care in any other form or way they can.
Employees must notify their employers as soon as possible for the leave to be informed and provide them with necessary documentation, evidence and medical reports.
Conclusion
Understanding the leave entitlements under DIFC Employment Law is fundamental for both employers and employees to ensure fulfillment and avoid the possibility of disputes. The DIFC also offers a broad framework that balances employee welfare with the operational needs of businesses, promoting a fair and equitable work environment.
The Employment Law in DIFC gives out certain specific rules and regulations along with leave entitlement for the employees, and it also ensures them that all the leaves mentioned above would be granted and covered during their span of employment.
