UAE cabinet approves new paid leave policy for select government employees

The UAE Cabinet, chaired by Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President, Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai, adopted a resolution on Wednesday, April 8, to grant paid leave to select categories of employees at the federal government in light of the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic.

The resolution stipulates that married employees of the federal government may take fully paid leave to take care of their children below the age of 16, reported news agency WAM.

The age condition shall not apply to people of determination, as well as in cases where a spouse is subject to self-isolation or quarantine measures that necessitate no contact with family members, as per a decision by the UAE’s Ministry of Health and Prevention.

Read: Dubai begins work-from-home for federal government employees

The new paid leave policy also applies to employees whose spouses work in vital health-related occupations, such as doctors, nurses, paramedics and other technical jobs that require exposure to infected people, as well as employees of quarantine centres, throughout the emergency period witnessed by the country.

Additionally, the relevant ministry or federal authority may ask employees in essential technical occupations to work remotely instead of taking leave.

“The resolution was issued in line with the UAE Government’s keenness to support employees and provide them with a safe and healthy working environment, as well as to protect the health and safety of government employees and their families, during the current crisis that requires greater efforts, additional working hours, and in some cases, exposure to infected people,” stated WAM.

On March 10, the Dubai government said that it would begin introducing a work-from-home policy for selected federal departments in the emirate as means to contain the spread of the Covid-19 coronavirus, in a policy which would gradually be applied to all the other emirates across the country.

The UAE’s Ministry of Health announced on April 8 its single highest daily increase in the rate of coronavirus infections in the country when it reported 300 new cases taking the total number of confirmed cases in the UAE to 2,659.

Read: UAE confirms 300 new Covid-19 cases; Saudi reports 137 additional cases