Dubai: A unified payment system for workers and the Ministry of Labour's emphasis on cracking down on non-complying companies will push the implementation of the Wage Protection System (WPS), financial institutions which will provide the service said.
The Ministry of Labour in coordination with the central bank yesterday launched WPS, an initiative to safeguard workers' salaries via transfer through selected financial institutions.
Anas Zaidan, vice-president of the C3Card - the first payroll service provider that is certified by the central bank - and Ministry of Labour, said the determination of the ministry to force companies to adhere to the cabinet decision stipulating the payment of workers' salaries through banks since January 2008 will be the main driver behind the success of the system.
"We have provided this service since the beginning of 2008, but not many companies have so far showed interest in our service.
"But now that the ministry is more aggressive in implementing the decision, we are expected to see more companies paying their workers' salaries electronically," Zaidan said.
C3 card, the only company linked to the WPS, conducted a pilot on the new system about ten days ago and the system worked smoothly, according to Zaidan.
C3 card is currently having about 100,000 workers in 35 companies paid through it.
The company has the capacity to cover one million workers, according to Zaidan.
Nabil Bader, CEO of Waseela Equity, one of the payroll service providers in the country, and the process of getting linked to WPS, said "the implementation of the decision with the introduction of the new system will be more effective because the whole country will have a unified system for payment of workers' salaries, which is monitored by the central bank and Ministry of Labour, as well as the ministry's insistence to follow up on the implementation by companies."
The company currently has 100,000 workers in 18 companies paid through them.
"Since the Minister of Labour made the announcement of the launch of the new system about a month ago, there has been a massive increase in the number of requests for our services," Bader said.
Sudhir Shetty, CEO of global operations of UAE Exchange, one of the two exchange agencies so far certified for the new system, said: "The emphasis from the ministry on the implementation of the decision coupled with the introduction of a unified system backed by the central bank will make the implementation more effective."
