Young Emiratis struggle to find jobs

Young Emiratis struggle to find jobs Sarah Young / 4 May 2013 Emiratis say they are struggling to get jobs due to the emphasis on “who you know, not what you know” — with some searching for at least a year. Dubai resident Amal Al Marzooqi was on the hunt for a job with sister Latifa, at the final day of careers fair Careers UAE 2013, which concluded on Thursday. Al Marzooqi said she had been searching for a job for about a year, since graduating with a Diploma in Business. NO REASON TO CHEER: Young job-seekers and visitors at the recent ‘Careers UAE’ exhibition at the Dubai International and Convention Centre. — KT photo by Shihab “I’m looking for any job now — staying at home is boring. And I’ve studied all these years, I want to use it.” She said getting a job, whether in the public or private sector, often depended on having a relative in the company. Al Marzooqi had completed work experience in the Dubai Airport human resources department for four months. “They were very happy with my work, but…if you have a contact you will get a job, but if you don’t, you won’t. This is starting to change, but very, very slowly.” She had been offered a job at a call centre a few months ago, but turned down the offer because the salary — Dh6,000 — did not seem enough for the 9-hour long days. “It’s not enough if you need to buy a car, pay for petrol…it’s very expensive living here, and it’s only getting more expensive for rent, food, everything.” She and her sister, who wants to work in graphic design, were looking at moving back to their home town Abu Dhabi to find work. “The salaries are about double what you get in Dubai. My family are there, so it will be cheaper to live too.” She said her brother commuted every day at 5am from Dubai to the Capital to work at ADNOC. He then went to college at nights, where he was studying engineering, before returning to Dubai. “It’s very hard for him. But that’s what you have to do.” Meanwhile, Maryam Salman, from Dubai, has been job hunting for two months since graduating with finance and marketing degrees. It was difficult to find work, she said. “A lot of my colleagues are in the same position after graduating. And for many of my friends and family, it took at least six months to a year to get a job.” Most employers were looking for experience, and while Salman has a part-time job at the Department of Economic Development, employers had told her this was not enough. “And it’s luck — if you have relatives or contacts it makes a big difference.” She said she was looking for anything now, private or public sector, as long as it had a decent salary. While salaries were definitely higher in Abu Dhabi, she still wanted to remain in Dubai, she said. Mohammed Ali, from Dubai, has been unemployed for one month. He worked for DPW in Sharjah for four years, and was unsuccessfully searching for another job the whole time, he said. “There are jobs out there, and if you have some link — family or you know the manager — they can help, but if you don’t, it’s not that easy. He wanted to work in customer service, and said he did not mind whether it was in the public or private sector. “I just want to work.” sarah@khaleejtimes.com Taylor Scott International