Blank cheque
Question: I have a blank cheque on which the date and amount are not written. This cheque was issued to me by my then partner against my share in my previous company. The share value is Dh500,000. Two months back, he paid me Dh50,000. I have kept this cheque with me for more than a year hoping that my previous partner would pay the full amount, but he has been delaying it. Finally, I told him that I will write the remaining amount and date and submit the same at the bank.
At this, he said that I may not be able to use this cheque as it was issued only as a guarantee cheque. Besides, as per the law, if the holder of the cheque has received part of the due amount, then he cannot enter the date and remaining amount and submit that cheque at the bank, he said. Is this true? I am planning to write only the actual due amount deducting Dh50,000 he had paid. Please guide me in this as I am being intimidated.
Answer: The Dubai Cassation Court has entitled the blank cheque holder to include the required information for submitting the same to the bank, including the date and amount. The court has assumed that the cheque owner who signed the blank cheque has authorised its holder to write all its required information including the date and amount. Therefore, I advise the questioner to write the amount and date of the cheque and submit the same to the bank. The objection of the cheque owner on the basis that it is only a guarantee cheque and that part of the cheque amount has been paid is unacceptable and the questioner’s action is in accordance with the law.
Breaking a limited job contract
Question: I have worked in a company for more than three years. In the first two years, I had worked under an unlimited contract but in March 2016, my contract was changed to limited. A month ago, I submitted my resignation as I got another job. However, the employer refused to give a no-objection certificate to transfer my sponsorship to the new company and my end-of-service gratuity.
The employer deducted 45 days’ salary in compensation for breaking the limited contract.
The employer told me that under the UAE Labour Law, I am not entitled to any end-of-service benefits and that he might prevent me from transferring the sponsorship. Please clarify my rights as per the law. Am I entitled to any end-of-service compensation? As I have completed more than three years with the current employer, am I required to obtain the no-objection certificate to transfer the sponsorship? My employer is also refusing to return my original certificate handed over to him at the time I joined work. How can I get my original certificate back? The employer has also said that I am not entitled to get the experience certificate because I have broken the limited contract.
Answer: The labour law does not entitle the worker who was working under a contract for a limited period to claim the end-of-service gratuity if the worker himself has broken the employment contract. The worker shall compensate the employer an amount equivalent to 45 days’ salary if the employer can prove that he suffered damages. The worker is, as per the labour law, entitled only to the pay for due leaves, which the worker did not obtain. As for the transfer to a new sponsor, the employer might request the Ministry of Labour to impose a one-year ban on grounds that the questioner had broken the employment contract, which is for a limited period and which has caused damages to the employer. Therefore, I advise the questioner to resolve this matter amicably with the employer so that he allow him to transfer to a new sponsor.
Finally, the UAE Labour Federal Law No. 8 of 1980 article 125 mentions the following: An employer shall provide a worker, if the latter requests so and on the termination of his contract, with a certificate of termination of service, which shall be free of charge; it shall specify the dates of his entering and leaving the employer’s service, his total period of service, the nature of the work he has performed, his last remuneration and any bonuses he has received. It shall also be the duty of the employer to return any certificates, documents and tools belonging to the worker.
Questions are answered by advocate Mohammad Ebrahim Al Shaiba of Al Shaiba Advocates and Legal Consultants.
