The UAE government has announced issuing a federal decree-law, amending particular provisions of the domestic workers’ law and its amendments. The government’s amendments aim to enhance the rights of all parties in employment relationships and facilitate the process of resolving disputes.
The domestic workers’ law amendments transfer domestic work disputes from the Court of Appeal to the Court of First Instance.
Under the new law, the Courts of Appeal will transfer all pending applications, disputes, and grievances to the Court of First Instance with no fees, effective from the date the present law takes effect. However, this transfer does not apply to cases that already have a sentence from a judge or are pending in the court’s pipeline for sentencing.
Amicable resolutions
The UAE’s new domestic workers’ law also stipulates that if a dispute arises between any employer, domestic worker, or recruitment company and is not resolved amicably, parties must refer to the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratization. Hence, the ministry has the capacity to take the appropriate measures to settle the dispute amicably, in line with the procedures in this law’s executive regulations and effective decisions.
If parties cannot reach an amicable settlement during a certain timeframe, the ministry must refer the dispute to the Court of First Instance. This referral must also include a memorandum summarizing the dispute, the arguments of both parties and the ministry’s recommendations.
The ministry also has the capacity to resolve disputes if the claim’s total amount does not exceed AED50,000. Moreover, it can resolve disputes if they involve one of the parties’ non-compliance with a prior amicable settlement decision from the ministry, regardless of the claim’s amount.
In such cases, the ministry’s decision has the effect of an executive instrument and must be treated as an enforcement order according to standard procedures.
Read: UAE issues new labour law to regulate employment, up to Dh1 million fine announced
Contesting the ministry’s decision
Any party to the dispute may file, within 15 working days of being notified, a lawsuit with the Court of First Instance to contest the ministry’s decision. The ruling of the Court of First Instance in this case is final. In addition, filing a lawsuit will suspend the enforcement of the ministry’s decision.
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