Dubai Chamber announces shift to new working week

The Dubai Chamber of Commerce and Industry will adopt the new four-and-a-half-day work week starting on January 3, a move that falls in line with a newly approved schedule for UAE federal government organisations and employees.

It will adopt a nine-hour working day from 8am to 5pm on Mondays through to Thursdays. Its offices will operate a four-hour day – from 8am to noon – on Fridays, the trade body said in a statement on Tuesday.

The Federal Authority for Government Human Resources has proposed the new work week following "comprehensive benchmarking and feasibility studies, reflecting potential impacts of the move on the economy, social and family ties, and the overall well-being of people in the UAE", Dubai Chamber said.

The UAE’s move to shift its weekend to Saturday and Sunday, announced on December 7, is the biggest overhaul of the Emirates' working week in decades. It could result in greater integration of the local economy with global markets and boost its competitiveness by attracting more investment into the country, according to analysts.

Schools have adopted the new routine, while a number of private companies, which are free to decide whether they will adopt the new work week, have already committed to the switch. Among them are accounting consultancy Deloitte and Abu Dhabi-listed Finance House.

A number of banks – including First Abu Dhabi Bank, the UAE's biggest lender – and international financial groups HSBC, Deutsche Bank, JP Morgan Chase, Bank of America Merrill Lynch and Société Générale have announced the switch to the new working week.

FAB and London-based HSBC also confirmed that their UAE branches will remain open on Saturdays.

Abu Dhabi Global Market, the emirate's international financial centre, said on Monday its switch the Monday-to-Friday work week in the new year.

The Dubai Chamber offers 50 smart services to the emirate's business community through its website and mobile application, and supports the private sector in expanding its reach within and beyond the UAE.