Dubai: Once you resign from your job, how long are you required to wait before your employer pays your gratuity and settles all your dues? Is it legal for a company to delay the payment for up to six months? A Gulf News reader wrote in raising this query.
“For how many months do I need to wait to get my gratuity and can I go back to my home country a month after I tender my resignation? Is it legal for my company to make me wait for four to six months, before I receive my gratuity? I have not been paid for the past six months. I tendered my resignation for that reason and salaries not being paid on time is a recurring issue. Now that I have tendered my resignation, I may not get paid for another four to six months, as many former employees who have resigned from the company have had to wait for months to receive their salary and gratuity. This is regardless of whether they are moving to a new job, or going back to their home country. Please advise.”
Gulf News raised the query with Mohamed Elmasry, an associate at Dubai-based law firm Al Suwaidi and Company, who cited Article 53 of the new UAE Labour Law – Federal Decree Law No. (33) Of 2021 - which stipulates the entitlements of a workers after the termination of the contract. As per the law, the employer is required to pay the worker within 14 days from the date of the contract termination. How the gratuity will be calculated is as per Article 51 of the law.
Article (53) - Payment of the Worker’s Entitlements After the End of the Contract
The employer shall pay the worker, within 14 days from the date of the contract termination, his remuneration and all other entitlements stipulated in this Decree-Law and the decisions issued in implementation thereof, the contract or the Establishment’s bylaws.
Article (51), Clause 2 – Severance pay for Full Time Workers
A foreign Worker who works in a full-time pattern, and who has completed one year or more in continuous service, shall be entitled to an end-of-service gratuity upon the end of his service, calculated according to the basic salary, as follows:
A. Remuneration of twenty-one Days for every year of service of the first five years.
B. Remuneration of thirty Days for each year after the first five years.
Other allowances a worker is entitled to
According to Elmasry, when an employee ends their work contract, they are not just entitled to gratuity but all their allowances, too.
He said: “If the employee submits his resignation or his service was terminated, then the employer shall pay all the employee’s outstanding dues, including salary, housing allowance, leave allowance, end-of-service gratuity, and any other benefits mentioned in his contract.”
Can I file a complaint complaint if my salary and gratuity are delayed?
According to Elmasry, in the event that the settlement of dues is not completed as per the UAE Labour Law, employees can raise a complaint with the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation (MOHRE) and in case an amicable resolution is not reached, they can then take their case to a labour court.
He said: “In the event that the employee’s entitlements were not paid within the period mentioned in Article 53 of the new Labour Law, the employee has the right to approach MOHRE to file a labour complaint against the employer. If the latter did not settle the employee’s entitlements amicably, then the employee has the right to file a labour case before the competent court and request for all of his entitlements along with compensation. Yet, it’s worth mentioning that all labour dues become obsolete after the lapse of one year from its due date, as per Article 54 (7) of the law.”
7- The lawsuit about any of the rights arising under the provisions of this Decree-Law shall not be considered after the lapse of one year from the date of entitlement of the right in question.
How to file a labour complaint
You can file a complaint with MOHRE through the following options:
1. Call the Ministry’s hotline on 800 60.
2. Download the MOHRE app and file a labour complaint
3. Visit www.mohre.gov.ae and select the option for filing a labour complaint.
