Enough nationals to fill HR posts, says Tanmia

Dubai: There will be enough qualified UAE nationals to fill the human resources positions vacated by expatriates, the head of the National Human Resources and Employment Authority (Tanmia) said on Sunday.

Eisa Za'abi said that the decision would pave the way for further Emiratisation in the private sector. "From my observation, companies that have had nationals working in their human resources departments have been able to meet Emiratisation targets more effectively," he said.

Two ministerial decisions issued on Saturday now require companies in the private sector to replace all human resources managers, personnel managers and secretarial positions with UAE nationals.

The Minister of Labour, Dr Abdullah Al Ka'abi, told Gulf News that companies violating the rule would receive penalties "according to the Labour Law" such as the blacklisting of the company in question.

Dr Khalid Al Khazraji, undersecretary at the Ministry of Labour, said the ministry was currently working to set up a mechanism for the implementation of the decision.

Za'abi indicated that the responsibility for training the potential employees will fall upon the companies in question. However, Tanmia would offer short courses and help in identifying the relevant training programmes to suit the requirements of the positions.

Ayesh Barghouti, head of research at Tanmia, reiterated the employment authority's intention to provide assistance to companies in finding suitable nationals to fill the required positions.

Barghouti said that since Tanmia's certified training programmes had already proven to be a success they could be used to assist companies. "In our first year of operation, all 20 of our trainees were offered employment prior to the completion of their courses, and all are still employed," he said.

Obaid Al Shamsi, a UAE national and human resources manager at Dubai Islamic Bank, said the new ruling would have a positive effect on the UAE economy. "Unemployment is high and the private sector could tackle that," he said.

He also said that his experience had shown nationals to be very productive and committed employees. "Although there doesn't necessarily have to be a direct link between the two, our bank's net profits have increased during Emiratisation."

Tough steps

Companies in free zone areas exempted

The ministerial decisions apply to all private sector companies registered with the Ministry of Labour, except those in the free zone areas.