DUBAI // Employers who falsely claim that an employee has fled, so they do not have to pay them salary or benefits, for instance, will be vigorously prosecuted, a senior Ministry of Labour official said yesterday.
"If it proves that an employer has registered a malicious absconding report against an employee he will be referred to the Public Prosecution on charges of forging official documents," Humaid bin Deemas, the ministry's acting director general, said in a meeting with a group of journalists.
"There is a legal ground for us to refer such employers who try to escape their duties by putting out such false absconding reports, as giving false information in an official document is forgery," he said.
It has always been illegal for employers to file a false report that one of their employees has broken their contract and absconded. Absconding is defined as not reporting for work for seven consecutive days without a valid reason.
According to the ministry, some employers had filed such reports to avoid paying salaries or so they would not have to pay end-of-service benefits.
"The absconding report is an organisational tool in the labour market which has been put in place so the concerned authorities could crack down on violators and we will not let it under any circumstances become a tool for employers who want to escape their duties or want to take vindictive actions against their employees," he said.
He recounted an ongoing case in which a Pakistani woman appealed to him to help her husband, who was detained by police for allegedly absconding and was scheduled to be deported.
She said that after her husband had demanded two months' back pay that he was owed, his employer told him they were going out on a job, but instead took him to the Naif police station.
The official, who did not disclose the names of the couple or the company, said the case was being investigated, and action would be taken against the employer if the allegations were proved correct.
He added that the problem was not "a trend", but that the ministry would now aggressively pursue such cases so the practice did not spread.
The legal status of the majority of expatriates who live in the country is based on the employment visa issued to them once they start a job.
A person is considered illegal if he or she remains in the country without working for the employer who provided them with a visa that is still valid.
A person who has an absconding report registered against him or her will be deported from the country and classified as illegal.
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Starring: Rose, Jisoo, Jennie, Lisa
Directors: Min Geun, Oh Yoon-Dong
Rating: 3/5
Notable salonnières of the Middle East through history
Al Khasan (Okaz, Saudi Arabia)
Tamadir bint Amr Al Harith, known simply as Al Khasan, was a poet from Najd famed for elegies, earning great renown for the eulogy of her brothers Mu’awiyah and Sakhr, both killed in tribal wars. Although not a salonnière, this prestigious 7th century poet fostered a culture of literary criticism and could be found standing in the souq of Okaz and reciting her poetry, publicly pronouncing her views and inviting others to join in the debate on scholarship. She later converted to Islam.
Maryana Marrash (Aleppo)
A poet and writer, Marrash helped revive the tradition of the salon and was an active part of the Nadha movement, or Arab Renaissance. Born to an established family in Aleppo in Ottoman Syria in 1848, Marrash was educated at missionary schools in Aleppo and Beirut at a time when many women did not receive an education. After touring Europe, she began to host salons where writers played chess and cards, competed in the art of poetry, and discussed literature and politics. An accomplished singer and canon player, music and dancing were a part of these evenings.
Princess Nazil Fadil (Cairo)
Princess Nazil Fadil gathered religious, literary and political elite together at her Cairo palace, although she stopped short of inviting women. The princess, a niece of Khedive Ismail, believed that Egypt’s situation could only be solved through education and she donated her own property to help fund the first modern Egyptian University in Cairo.
Mayy Ziyadah (Cairo)
Ziyadah was the first to entertain both men and women at her Cairo salon, founded in 1913. The writer, poet, public speaker and critic, her writing explored language, religious identity, language, nationalism and hierarchy. Born in Nazareth, Palestine, to a Lebanese father and Palestinian mother, her salon was open to different social classes and earned comparisons with souq of where Al Khansa herself once recited.
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Pharaoh's curse
British aristocrat Lord Carnarvon, who funded the expedition to find the Tutankhamun tomb, died in a Cairo hotel four months after the crypt was opened.
He had been in poor health for many years after a car crash, and a mosquito bite made worse by a shaving cut led to blood poisoning and pneumonia.
Reports at the time said Lord Carnarvon suffered from “pain as the inflammation affected the nasal passages and eyes”.
Decades later, scientists contended he had died of aspergillosis after inhaling spores of the fungus aspergillus in the tomb, which can lie dormant for months. The fact several others who entered were also found dead withiin a short time led to the myth of the curse.
More from UAE Human Development Report:
Labour dispute
The insured employee may still file an ILOE claim even if a labour dispute is ongoing post termination, but the insurer may suspend or reject payment, until the courts resolve the dispute, especially if the reason for termination is contested. The outcome of the labour court proceedings can directly affect eligibility.
- Abdullah Ishnaneh, Partner, BSA Law
Teams
Punjabi Legends Owners: Inzamam-ul-Haq and Intizar-ul-Haq; Key player: Misbah-ul-Haq
Pakhtoons Owners: Habib Khan and Tajuddin Khan; Key player: Shahid Afridi
Maratha Arabians Owners: Sohail Khan, Ali Tumbi, Parvez Khan; Key player: Virender Sehwag
Bangla Tigers Owners: Shirajuddin Alam, Yasin Choudhary, Neelesh Bhatnager, Anis and Rizwan Sajan; Key player: TBC
Colombo Lions Owners: Sri Lanka Cricket; Key player: TBC
Kerala Kings Owners: Hussain Adam Ali and Shafi Ul Mulk; Key player: Eoin Morgan
Venue Sharjah Cricket Stadium
Format 10 overs per side, matches last for 90 minutes
Timeline October 25: Around 120 players to be entered into a draft, to be held in Dubai; December 21: Matches start; December 24: Finals