New UAE Labour Law decree: How do part-time workers get annual leave?

Dubai: If you have completed one year of service at work as a full-time employee, you are entitled to a 30-day paid leave. However, what happens if you are working in a company as a part-time employee? As per the new UAE Labour Law, which came into effect from February 2, 2022, the calculation will depend on the actual number of working hours of the employee.

If you are under a part-time work contract and want to know how many days of annual leave you are entitled, you have to calculate your working hours and as specified in your employment contract, and the leave will be calculated according to a mathematical equation.

The equation is highlighted in Cabinet Resolution No. (1) Of 2022 issued by the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation (MoHRE). Following the implementation of the new UAE Labour Law this year, MOHRE has issued several resolutions or decrees, which provide further details on the various situations and special conditions related to the implementation of the law.

Cabinet Resolution No. (1) Of 2022 provides details on the implementation of the new UAE Labour Law - Federal Decree-Law No. (33) Of 2021.

Article 18 of this resolution explains the calculation of annual leave for part-time workers.

Article (18) - Annual Leave for Part-time Workers

According to Article 18, this is how part time workers can avail an annual leave:

“Subject to the provisions of Clause (2) of Article (29) of the Decree-Law, a part-time worker shall be entitled to an annual leave according to the actual working hours he spends with the employer. The duration of the annual leave shall be determined on the basis of the total working hours after converting them into working days, divided by the number of working days in the year, multiplied by the legally prescribed leaves, with a minimum of five working days per year for annual leave, and a fraction of a day considered as a full day in calculating the leave entitlements ...”

So, once the total number of working days is determined, it has to be divided by the number of working days in the year which a full-time employee would serve. This number would then be multiplied by the legally prescribed leaves as per the UAE Labour Law. If the resulting number includes a fraction, it would be considered a full day.

Annual leave calculation for part-time workers

The Article further goes on to state how many hours will be counted for a working day as well as a formula that needs to be followed to calculate the number of days of leave the worker is entitled to.

It states the following factors that needs to be considered:

1. The ratio of the employee's work under a part-time contract shall be equal to the employee’s work under a full-time contract.

2. The actual working hours shall be equal to a maximum of eight working hours per day.

3. The number of working hours of the employee under a part-time contract shall be equal to the number of the hours contracted.

4. The mathematical equation shall consist of the number of working hours under the employee’s part-time contract per year divided by the number of working hours under the full-time contract per year multiplied by 100 equal to the percentage.

So, a full day's work would require a maximum of eight working hours a day, and this should be as per the work contract signed between the employer and the employee. However, the part-time employee would be entitled to five days of leave every year, at the minimum.