Dubai: A large majority (88%) of the job seekers in the Middle East plan to make more time for finding a job during the Ramadan period, according to a Bayt survey.
This correlates with the finding that 69 per cent of respondents believe that hiring activity increases during Ramadan, 14 per cent say it decreases whilst 11 per cent believe it remains the same.
The majority of respondents (89%) claim to have more positive and optimistic feelings about their career during Ramadan, whereas 88 per cent believe that the holy month lifts overall morale at work.
“Our annual survey highlights that many professionals find Ramadan a better time to work on their careers, as they feel more focused and productive,” said Ola Haddad, Director of Human Resources at Bayt.com.
Most MENA companies make special adjustments during the Holy Month of Ramadan. These include offering flexible working arrangements or shorter hours (54%), maintaining health and safety at work (14%), giving more rest breaks throughout the day (2%), and tolerating leniency with deadlines (1%).
In fact, 87 per cent of respondents say that their direct managers accommodate their religious needs during Ramadan. Thanks to these special measures, 85 per cent of respondents are satisfied with their employer’s flexibility during Ramadan.
Although 65 per cent of MENA respondents agree that their workload increases during the Holy Month, this is likely due to the fact that working hours decrease as stated by 54 per cent of respondents – 21 per cent of respondents said their workload stays the same during Ramadan, while 14 per cent of respondents said it decreases.
Higher productivity
Despite changes in workload, 40 per cent of professionals agree that they feel more productive during Ramadan, 49 per cent of respondents said their productivity doesn’t change, and only 11 per cent said they become less productive.
Meanwhile, around 40 per cent of respondents say that they take more vacation days during Ramadan, while 52 per cent claim the opposite is true.
