Dubai: Dubai will soon launch ‘Excellence Cards’ for the labour sector, offering companies more than 35 incentives from government agencies as well as shopping discounts for workers, officials announced on Saturday.
The project features two types of cards. The first is a Gold Card that will be awarded to companies with four and five-star ratings in the Taqdeer Award to obtain the incentives provided by government departments. The second is a Blue Card that will enable eligible workers to obtain special discounts from malls and commercial establishments located near their accommodations. The total value of discounts provided by malls, commercial establishments and national and international private companies amounts to millions of dirhams.
First phase
In its initial phase, the Excellence Cards will be given to 15 major national and international companies that won four and five-star ratings in the fourth edition of the Taqdeer Award in 2020, as well as the 50,000 workers of these companies.
The award, held under the patronage of Shaikh Hamdan Bin Mohammad Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai and Chairman of the Executive Council of Dubai, recognises companies for their care for workers.
Award ceremony
The announcement for the first Excellence Cards will be made at a gala award ceremony on May 17 at the Rashid Hall of Dubai World Trade Centre. The project offers more than 35 incentives extended by four government agencies: Roads and Transport Authority (RTA), Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (Dewa), Dubai Municipality and General Directorate of Residency and Foreigners Affairs in Dubai (GDRFA-Dubai). The project also features a wide range of incentives and discounts extended by private institutions for the workers of these companies.
Token of appreciation
Major General Obaid Muhair Bin Surour, Chairman of Taqdeer Award, Chairman of the Permanent Committee for Labour Affairs (PCLA) in Dubai and Deputy Director of the General Directorate of Residency and Foreigners Affairs in Dubai (GDRFA-Dubai), said the Excellence Cards is a pioneering project that aims to enhance efforts to establish sustainable policies and standards in labour care and ensure that company owners and workers maintain their responsibilities and obligations towards each other. The initiative is a token of appreciation for the excellence shown by companies and workers in meeting high labour practice standards.
Maj Gen Bin Surour said: “The project is the result of the tireless efforts and our constructive discussions with the supporting government agencies. This initiative has become a reality thanks to the exceptional incentives they have offered, which stems from their commitment to promote a culture of excellence in labour welfare and their keenness to enhance Dubai’s and the UAE’s benchmarks and global reputation in worker welfare practices.”
Government incentives
The Excellence Cards project features 35 sets of incentives for companies and workers, most notably, discounts ranging from 25 to 50 per cent on fees for the submission of tender documents to several government bodies, additional points for the engineering excellence initiative within the technical evaluation process for contractors and consultants in Dubai Municipality projects under the specific criteria of the Building Permits Department, waiver of renewal fees for professional competence certificates for engineers for a renewable period of a year. Other incentives include membership in GDRFA–Dubai’s Innovation and Creativity Centre that will allow the workers and companies to take advantage of its services; special facilities for registering intellectual property; free virtual training courses at Dewa Academy; free NoL cards for workers; and opportunities for companies to place an advertisement on Dubai Metro Station display boards.
Award sponsors
The Taqdeer Award is supported by RTA, DEWA, Dubai Municipality, GDRFA-Dubai, wasl Asset Management Group and Dubai TV as Strategic Partners, along with NIA, the Platinium Sponsor, flydubai and emaratech, the Gold Sponsors, and Emirates NBD, ENOC and Al Fardan Exchange, the Silver Sponsors.
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Biennial Award
Major Khaled Ismail, Secretary-General of the Award, said: “As the award is organised once every two years, the advantages of the Excellence Cards will continue throughout these two years. The benefits and discounts are then given to new winners in the next editions of the award.”
The winning companies can register on the award’s website to obtain government incentives, while the award team will coordinate with government agencies and private institutions to ensure eligible workers can take advantage of the incentives. The award team will hold a workshop to brief the winning companies and workers on how they can take advantage of the Excellence Card.
