A reader from Dubai asks: After working in a company for three years, I transferred my sponsorship to my current company. I would now like to leave this company because there is a better opportunity available at another company in terms of a better salary and entitlements. My current labour contract is unlimited and mentions salary plus commission. I have applied for a No Objection Certificate (NOC) to transfer the sponsorship in the event of my resignation, but the manager of human resources says that the Ministry of Labour does not allow transfer of sponsorship more than once in a year. Is this true? I hold a higher education degree and have wide experience in the field of my specialisation. The manager has also mentioned that I’m not entitled to commission because I have not completed one year in the company. Please advise.
As per Ministry of Labour rules, the questioner can transfer sponsorship to any company more than once in a year as long as he gets a salary offer of not less than Dh12,000. A NOC from the current sponsor is not required by the ministry. The questioner is also entitled to commission because in this case it is considered part of the salary package.
Breaking a limited contract
A reader from Dubai asks: I have been working in a company for more than two years. I am not comfortable working with the company any longer because of mistreatment at the hands of my direct manager as well as the ongoing delaying in payment of salary (more than four months). I submitted my resignation and asked the management to give me my dues. My contract is a limited one. They refused saying that as per the labour law I was breaking a limited contract. They have asked me to accept the amount which the company gives. I have filed a complaint before the Ministry of Labour. I fear the company will cancel my residence visa as soon as the complaint is registered before the ministry and seek a one-year ban. Please advise.
The questioner may file a complaint before the Ministry of Labour if he has not obtained his dues amicably from the company in full. He need not pay attention to the company’s threats because as per labour rules, an employer has no right to cancel the residence visa before an employee obtains his dues completely, whether amicably or through the labour court. The employee may follow up his case and remain in the country till he obtains his dues. The employee has the right to apply for a temporary work permit after proving to the ministry that he has filed a case in court. The ministry usually responds to such requests. The questioner has the right to seek transfer of sponsorship from the ministry directly, without the consent of the sponsor, if he so desires. The questioner must prove that he has not received his salary for more than two months. Finally, as per the Dubai Supreme Court, the questioner is not considered to be violating labour law by breaking the limited contract as long as the company did not pay salary for more than two months and the questioner was forced to break such contract.
Death of a creditor
A reader from Dubai asks: My friend had taken a bank loan of Dh300,000. He was paying the monthly instalments consistently, but he died in April. Thus, the payments to the bank stopped in May 2014. The bank filed a case before the court claiming that the man’s heirs must pay the debt. Does the bank have the right to claim the debt in the event of the creditor’s death?
Most banks insure debts, especially those debts in which the creditors die. Generally, the creditor pays the amount of insurance in hidden charges. Therefore, I advise the questioner to include the insurance company in his court case so that the it is obligated to bear the debt.
Questions answered by advocate Mohammad Ebrahim Al Shaiba of Al Shaiba Advocates and Legal Consultants.
— Compiled by Bassam Za’za’, Legal and Court Correspondent
