UAE President issues decree for private sector to pay equal salaries to men and women

Men and women working in the UAE’s private sector will have to be paid equal salaries if they are doing the same work, as per a new decree issued by UAE President Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan.

The decree will go into effect from Friday, September 25, official news agency WAM reported.

The labour law has been amended to now state: “Female employees shall receive wages equal to that of males if they perform the same work, or another of equal value. The procedures, controls and standards necessary for evaluating work of equal value will be set under a decision to be issued by the Cabinet, based on a proposal from the Minister of Human Resources and Emiratisation.”

The new government procedures and controls will determine the requirement of equal wages for jobs of equal value and market standards will be used as a reference in salary assessments.

The amended article supports the objective of “reinforcing gender equality in terms of wages and salaries in the private sector”, the report added.

The ministry stressed that the new amendments will help strengthen the country’s status for upholding gender equality.

The UAE currently leads the region in bridging the gender pay gap, according to the World Economic Forum’s Global Gender Gap report in 2020.