Ladies day at Careers UAE Fair

Dubai: More international companies should take initiative in Emiratisation process to offer more job opportunities to nationals in the private sector, said the job seekers at the Careers UAE 2013 exhibition in Dubai yesterday.

The second day of the Careers UAE 2013 exhibition which aims to provide UAE nationals and companies a platform to meet for possible job and training opportunities, was open yesterday to women only and focused on women empowerment.

“We have approximately 550 Emiratis working in Al Futtaim and our target is to have 1000 by December 31 this year. Almost half of the Emiratis working with us are women as their qualifications are higher than men especially at the junior level,” said Zuhair Al Haj, Director of HR and localisation at the private company Al Futtaim.

As a specialist in Emiratisation, Al Haj stated that Emiratis including women can be integrated in any field and in any sector given that they were supported by the company. He also added that the lack of presence of foreign company in the fair proves that these companies should be more committed to Emiratisation.

“Emiratis including woman are now keeping away from jobs typically occupied by Emiratis such as banks and are moving more towards the private sector, so now it depends on the commitment that the private sector can give. For example we were able to move 90 Emirati women into non-traditional jobs such as retail through the training we offer them and the programmes we have for women that allow them to work for half days and even during the weekend if they like,” said Al Haj

Ismail Salehi, Retail Operation Manager at Ahmad Seddiqi and Sons stated that international companies should exert more effort and be present in the Emirati recruitment market in order to raise awareness about their presence.

“Most people don’t know whether a company is private or international, and international companies especially if they are related to advertising, sales or media are all separated in media city. Most of these companies don’t have Emiratis working in it and Emiratis themselves don’t even know that they exist so they should be available in such fairs to promote themselves and their job offerings.”

Most Emiratis were open to trying new jobs in different fields and sectors and so are looking for more job options as Mariam Ahmad told Gulf News.

“After President His Highness Shaikh Khalifa’s initiative ‘Absher’, private jobs have become more attractive to Emiratis. I am personally more interested in working in an international company because I want to develop my skills and get more exposed to a multicultural environment,” Mariam added.

Hind Al Beloushi stated that she welcomes job opportunities in all sectors given that they respect her tradition and culture.

“We as Emirati woman have become more open to working in the private sector; it provides us with different job opportunities as well as allows us to acquire more skills, as for international companies I don’t mind working in them given that they respect my traditions and culture as an Emirati,” said Hind.