Nearly six in 10 professionals in the UAE are considering switching their work industry in the next few months, according to the findings of a new survey.
They cited better salary and career growth (46 per cent) as the main reasons for considering an industry change. Government or civil service (14 per cent) ranked as the most appealing sector among those thinking of an industry switch, Bayt.com’s Top Industries in the Middle East and North Africa 2020 survey found. Conducted in partnership with market research company YouGov, the survey polled 1,898 respondents in several Mena countries, including the UAE and Saudi Arabia, from September 21 to October 8.
The coronavirus pandemic has tipped the global economy into a steep recession, prompting workers around the world to reskill to adjust to a rapidly changing economy.
The Bayt.com survey found that 19 per cent of UAE respondents have changed their industry at least once in the past two years.
“Our latest survey confirms a significant increase in interest in certain industries – largely fuelled by salary and benefits, work-life balance, career growth and job security,” Ola Haddad, director of human resources at job site Bayt.com, said.
“Employers need to deliver on jobseekers’ continuously evolving expectations to attract the best candidates. This starts with understanding jobseeker preferences.”
The UAE’s hiring rate briefly hit pre-pandemic levels in October, rising 9.5 per cent annually within the global average of 9 to 10 per cent, according to LinkedIn. It identified 10 jobs that are expected to continue to be in high demand by employers in the future, including digital marketers, data analysts, software developers and financial analysts.
Jobseekers in the UAE are most keen to work in sectors such as hospitality/recreation/entertainment, education and engineering/design, the Bayt.com survey found.
However, when it comes to maintaining a work-life balance, respondents ranked government/civil service (30 per cent), banking/finance/accounting (22 per cent) and oil, gas and petrochemicals (17 per cent) as the most attractive industries to work in the UAE.
Information technology and e-commerce (25 per cent) and healthcare/medical services (25 per cent) are viewed as the industries expected to record the strongest growth next year.
According to the survey findings, almost two in five respondents believe that oil, gas and petrochemicals is the industry that offers the best salary package, including non-monetary benefits, in their country of residence, while 21 per cent believe that banking/finance offers the second-best salaries.
In terms of career growth, a majority of respondents (26 per cent) consider oil, gas and petrochemicals to be the best industry, followed by banking/finance/accounting (22 per cent).
For job security, 29 per cent of respondents ranked military/defence/police on top, followed by government/civil service (27 per cent) and oil, gas and petrochemicals (21 per cent).
More than half of all respondents (55 per cent) to the survey said the government is a favourable employer, and 36 per cent said it is an extremely favourable employer.
Meanwhile, the sectors of banking/finance/accounting (21 per cent) and hospitality/recreation/ entertainment (18 per cent) are perceived to hire most new graduates.
However, when it comes to attracting local talent, the top three sectors are government/civil service (28 per cent), military/defence/police (27 per cent) and oil, gas and petrochemicals (20 per cent), the survey found.
Female jobseekers in the UAE said the industries of hospitality/recreation/entertainment (28 per cent), healthcare/medical services (24 per cent) and human resources (24 per cent) are the most attractive.
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ICC Women's T20 World Cup Asia Qualifier 2025, Thailand
UAE fixtures
May 9, v Malaysia
May 10, v Qatar
May 13, v Malaysia
May 15, v Qatar
May 18 and 19, semi-finals
May 20, final
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Akeed
Based: Muscat
Launch year: 2018
Number of employees: 40
Sector: Online food delivery
Funding: Raised $3.2m since inception
'Ashkal'
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Zakat definitions
Zakat: an Arabic word meaning ‘to cleanse’ or ‘purification’.
Nisab: the minimum amount that a Muslim must have before being obliged to pay zakat. Traditionally, the nisab threshold was 87.48 grams of gold, or 612.36 grams of silver. The monetary value of the nisab therefore varies by current prices and currencies.
Zakat Al Mal: the ‘cleansing’ of wealth, as one of the five pillars of Islam; a spiritual duty for all Muslims meeting the ‘nisab’ wealth criteria in a lunar year, to pay 2.5 per cent of their wealth in alms to the deserving and needy.
Zakat Al Fitr: a donation to charity given during Ramadan, before Eid Al Fitr, in the form of food. Every adult Muslim who possesses food in excess of the needs of themselves and their family must pay two qadahs (an old measure just over 2 kilograms) of flour, wheat, barley or rice from each person in a household, as a minimum.
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How to join and use Abu Dhabi’s public libraries
• There are six libraries in Abu Dhabi emirate run by the Department of Culture and Tourism, including one in Al Ain and Al Dhafra.
• Libraries are free to visit and visitors can consult books, use online resources and study there. Most are open from 8am to 8pm on weekdays, closed on Fridays and have variable hours on Saturdays, except for Qasr Al Watan which is open from 10am to 8pm every day.
• In order to borrow books, visitors must join the service by providing a passport photograph, Emirates ID and a refundable deposit of Dh400. Members can borrow five books for three weeks, all of which are renewable up to two times online.
• If users do not wish to pay the fee, they can still use the library’s electronic resources for free by simply registering on the website. Once registered, a username and password is provided, allowing remote access.
• For more information visit the library network's website.
Dubai Rugby Sevens, December 5 -7
World Sevens Series Pools
A – Fiji, France, Argentina, Japan
B – United States, Australia, Scotland, Ireland
C – New Zealand, Samoa, Canada, Wales
D – South Africa, England, Spain, Kenya
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
How to wear a kandura
Dos
- Wear the right fabric for the right season and occasion
- Always ask for the dress code if you don’t know
- Wear a white kandura, white ghutra / shemagh (headwear) and black shoes for work
- Wear 100 per cent cotton under the kandura as most fabrics are polyester
Don’ts
- Wear hamdania for work, always wear a ghutra and agal
- Buy a kandura only based on how it feels; ask questions about the fabric and understand what you are buying
11 cabbie-recommended restaurants and dishes to try in Abu Dhabi
Iqbal Restaurant behind Wendy’s on Hamdan Street for the chicken karahi (Dh14)
Pathemari in Navy Gate for prawn biryani (from Dh12 to Dh35)
Abu Al Nasar near Abu Dhabi Mall, for biryani (from Dh12 to Dh20)
Bonna Annee at Navy Gate for Ethiopian food (the Bonna Annee special costs Dh42 and comes with a mix of six house stews – key wet, minchet abesh, kekel, meser be sega, tibs fir fir and shiro).
Al Habasha in Tanker Mai for Ethiopian food (tibs, a hearty stew with meat, is a popular dish; here it costs Dh36.75 for lamb and beef versions)
Himalayan Restaurant in Mussaffa for Nepalese (the momos and chowmein noodles are best-selling items, and go for between Dh14 and Dh20)
Makalu in Mussaffa for Nepalese (get the chicken curry or chicken fry for Dh11)
Al Shaheen Cafeteria near Guardian Towers for a quick morning bite, especially the egg sandwich in paratha (Dh3.50)
Pinky Food Restaurant in Tanker Mai for tilapia
Tasty Zone for Nepalese-style noodles (Dh15)
Ibrahimi for Pakistani food (a quarter chicken tikka with roti costs Dh16)
