Sharjah Ruler approves part-time employment system for elderly, wives and retirees

Sharjah has approved a new part-time employment system in its government departments targeting elderly citizens, wives and retirees, allowing them to choose between working three days a week or specified daily hours.

His Highness Sheikh Dr Sultan bin Mohammed Al Qasimi, Supreme Council Member and Ruler of Sharjah, had approved the part-time employment system as part of efforts to provide more flexible job opportunities within the emirate’s government.

He approved 1,000 part-time jobs and ordered the recruitment of 1,200 Emiratis in Sharjah government departments.

Abdullah Ibrahim Al Zaabi, Chairman of Sharjah’s Department of Human Resources, announced the new system on the Direct Line programme broadcast by Sharjah Radio and Television on Monday.

Al Zaabi said the initiative is designed particularly for elderly citizens, wives and retirees who wish to continue working or return to employment without taking on a conventional full-time schedule.

Eligible participants will be able to choose between two working arrangements, either three days a week or a specified number of working hours, according to the announcement.

The measure broadens flexible employment opportunities in Sharjah and could allow the government to draw on the skills and experience of retirees while offering citizens whose personal or family circumstances make full-time employment difficult an alternative route into the workforce.

The move follows earlier discussions about making greater use of retirees’ expertise. During a Sharjah Consultative Council session in January, members raised the possibility of employing retirees who remain capable of contributing their experience to government entities and transferring their knowledge to other employees.

It also comes days after Sheikh Sultan approved a package of measures to improve citizens’ living standards, including raising the minimum monthly living standard to Dh20,000 for Sharjah government employees, government retirees, eligible non-government retirees and families receiving social assistance.

The UAE has also recently expanded pension coverage for Emiratis working part-time under federal pension laws, covering schedules of eight to 32 hours, or one to four days, a week.