Dubai/Abu Dhabi: As everybody around them is steeped in the Eid celebrations, for these untiring workers it is business as usual with their job hours. Providing round-the-clock essential services that enable others to enjoy the festive season to the full, these individuals play a big role in keeping the city ticking.
From the dedicated immigration officials dealing with the holiday rush at airports, to the police force, civil defence, and the fourth estate, to workers at shopping malls, supermarkets and cleaners, gardeners, delivery boys, nurses and doctors, there is an entire section of society that works as usual on holidays so that residents and tourists alike can enjoy the holiday season without a glitch.
Gulf News meets some of these unsung heroes to highlight their dedication and spirit of service.
Mohammad Rafeeque, supermarket delivery boy, Dubai
Supermarket delivery boy Mohammad Rafeeque wakes up at 6am and works till 6pm during the Eid holidays. Suchitra Chaudhary/Gulf News
He wakes up at 6am and works till 6pm as the Eid holidays mean people are having get-togethers and there is additional demand for staples. “During Eid, our schedule gets a lot busier as people throw parties at home and we get all kinds of demands such as for snacks, ice cream, ice cubes, milk, yoghurt, etc. I make at least 12-15 deliveries on my motorcycle during the day,” said Rafeeque, who has been working as a delivery boy for the last six years. This year, he worked on both days on Eid. He will add his leave in lieu to his leave to visit his family back in Wayanad in Kerala, India. This extra time with his family is useful, he said.
“I cannot say no to working on Eid holidays as I know it is important to our business. Besides, I got to have an Eid lunch with my friends on Sunday during my one-hour lunch break and was able to enjoy the festive spirit,” said Rafeeque, who is looking forward to going home later in the year.
Abdiel Makalino Yambot, petrol attendant
Abidiel works from 7am to 3pm during the Eid holidays. Suchitra Chaudhary/Gulf News
“I do not mind working over Eid holidays as it means getting extra cash for overtime,” said Yambot who works during the Eid holidays from 7am to 3pm. “I feel my Muslim colleagues deserve to take a break,” he said.
Though the heat makes people irritable, Yambot said he brings a cool touch of service with a smile. “I always smile and greet [my customers] as working in the heat does make people become intolerant. I extend Eid greetings [to them] and smile as I fill up their fuel tanks and many people smile back and say ‘Thank you’. That makes my day,” said Yambot. He worked on both days of the Eid holiday.
The eldest of six siblings, he supports his family and his mother in Bulacan in the Philippines.
Sree Kala VS, nurse at Medeor 24/7 Hospital
Sree Kala works as nurse from 7am to 3.30pm and believes she still has enough time to devote to her family after work.
A superintendent in-charge of the Neo Natal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) at Medeor 24/7, Dubai, for the last five years, Sree Kala is in love with her job. She works 48 hours a week for six days and does not mind taking on extra 16 hours of work during Eid leave.
“I have a 12-year-old son who along with his father has a great holiday during the Eid break. But I prioritise my professional life over the personal because my work in the NICU requires me to be hands-on with the babies who are all pre-term. Their mothers’ require to be instructed on how to hold them and breastfeed them as the babies are so delicate. I have to check on them and cannot think of taking leave during long holidays.”
When she sees the happy faces of the reassured mothers and the regular sound of the babies breathing, she said it is her “biggest reward.”
Sree Kala, who is from Chengannur district in Kerala, India, works from 7am to 3.30pm and believes she still has enough time to devote to her family after her working hours. “But my job demands I spend time here when it is required.” She is entitled to take leave in lieu for having worked during Eid.
Dr Zeeshan Khan, specialist, Internal Medicine and Intensivist in Intensive Care Unit, Medeor 24/7 Hospital
Dr Zeeshan Khan of Medeor 24/7 Hospital has been choosing to work on the Eid holidays for the last two years. Suchitra Chaudhary/Gulf News
Dr Zeeshan Khan had all the reasons to be at home with his anaesthesiologist wife, his two infant children and parents as his younger brother is visiting from UK. Instead, he chose to do the 10am — 6pm duty on the second day of Eid. “I had leave on the first day of Eid and got time to enjoy the special Eid lunch with the family, but being a doctor, I feel it is not right on my part to be at home when my patients need me. I can spend time with the family later in the evening.”
Dr Khan feels that while hospitals are less busy during holidays, there is always the odd emergency cropping up which requires expertise. “We often get severely diabetic patients with unusually high sugar readings, patients with pneumonia and other respiratory complications, heart patients and I do not want to be anywhere where my response time to such emergencies is beyond one hour. So I choose to be at work,” said Dr Khan, who hails from Rampur, India. He said he has been choosing to work on Eid holidays for the last two years.
Natisha Pankhiyo, massage therapist at beauty salon
Massage therapist Natisha Pankhiyo works from noon to 10pm during the holiday. Suchitra Chaudhary/Gulf News
“We have more massage bookings during Eid than on normal days due to the holiday rush,” said Pankhiyo, 37, mother of two teenage children who is from Bangkok, Thailand.
Pankhiyo who works from 12 noon to 10pm has had a packed schedule of 10 massages of one hour each. “Usually, I am booked for 6-8 massages but on festive breaks, there are more bookings. Festivals means more business,” she said.
Zarkash Humayun, butcher
Butcher Zarkash Humayun ensures that his customers get the best meat. Abdul Rahman/Gulf News
For Humayun, who is from Pakistan, it is normal to work during the Eid holidays because as he puts it, “many people rely on us. So I am happy to be able to provide them with what they need over the holidays. It is important for some shops to remain open during the holidays, especially butcher shops because the Eid is a festive occasion, and many families and friends hold gatherings and food plays a big role in these get-togethers,” he said.
“It’s not a problem for me to work over the Eid holidays, it makes me happy that I am providing a service that people need.”
Ghazim Ahmad, Afghanistan, baker
Ghazim Ahmad making the traditional roti at his bakery in Abu Dhabi during the Eid holiday. Abdul Rahman/Gulf News
“During the Eid Al Fitr holiday we get a lot of customers, so the shop stays open and I work as usual,” said Ahmad, who is from Afghanistan. “I am happy to help the people during the holidays because they come to us looking for our services.”
Working during Eid holidays was nothing new for him, he said. “I know many people often don’t like to work during the holidays, but I am happy with my work.”
Mohammad Abdul, building watchman
Watchman Mohammad Badul is always ready to help his building’s residents. Abdul Rahman/Gulf News
For Abdul, Eid is like any other working day. “I am on watch duty during Eid,” he said. He gets paid extra for working during Eid and that he said makes him happy.
Given the nature of his job, Abdul, who is from Afghanistan, said it needs to be done even on holidays. “It is an important job. As a watchman, you have to make sure everything is in order and okay with the building. You need to be there in case a tenant needs you. So I have no problem working, because if anything happens, at least I am here and can do something about it.”
He also believes that him being on the job gives tenants peace of mind. “They know a watchman is on duty. I also have a good relationship with the tenants, so it makes it easier for me to work over the holidays,” he said.
