No work permits for
lawbreakers: MoL

No work permits for
lawbreakers: MoL Salah Al Deberky (news@khaleejtimes.com) / 18 July 2013 Several companies which were found in violation of a set of four regulations, with the Ministry of Labour putting a stop to all dealings with them, will be contacted and notified in order to clear the offences. The ministry will first send a preliminary notice to the owners of the offending establishments, followed by another notice next month. In the case of no response, the ministry will then suspend issuing work permits to them, and will also reject opening a registry if the defaulters wish to open new establishments, in effect from September 2013. “The move was in pursuance of the decision issued by Labour Minister Saqr Ghobash Saeed Ghobash lately, and under which procedures of issuing permits will be re-organised as well as opening the establishment card for the employers who commit the four violations, plus a fifth offence which will see the ministry put a stop to practising the activity without settling the conditions of the employees in the establishment,” said Humaid bin Deemas Al Suwaidi, Assistant Undersecretary for Labour Affairs at the ministry. It is the violation towards which the ministry suspends dealing with other establishments owned by the employer concerned. Suspension will be made immediately without giving the offender a grace period to rectify the irregularity, and the ban will not be lifted unless after the lapse of three months from the date the irregularity was cleared. Employer fails to pay the wages to his employees for two months or more (taking into account the periods in which payment of wages are stopped and the number of workers affected by it). Non-payment of the due administrative fines payable to the Ministry of Labour for a period of four months from the date they become due. Failing to issue or renew the labour card of employees for four months from the date the worker enters the country or from the expiry date. Non-renewal of the establishment’s licence for four months from the date of expiry. This came at a meeting held recently at the MoL’s office in Dubai, presided over by Al Suwaidi and attended by the directors of the Labour Affairs sector departments, directors of labour offices and a number of employees concerned. “The decision of the labour minister did not revoke the measure taken against the establishment which commits the violations, as the ministry will continue to prohibit issuing it new work permits”, he said, noting that, the decision had abolished the procedures enforced on other establishments owned by the offending employer. He said: “The ministry, and before July 1 this year, had suspended transactions, with immediate effect, with all companies belonging to the employer and the establishments with which he (the employer) shared with other employers, in case violations are made by these establishments, and without prior notification”. Taylor Scott International