Speakers at the Ministry of Interior (MoI) Ramadan majlis commended the UAE Labour Law as inclusive and balanced, serving the rights and the duties of both the employers and the workers and building an advanced constructive relationship between the two parties of labour equation in the country.

A group of members of the Federal National Council, senior police officers and labour officials as well as scholars spoke at the majlis organised by the Ministry Office for Respect for Culture of Law in Ajman about a broad range of issues about the legal framework of the labour market, rights and duties of workers, common violations committed by both employers and workers, and cultural and social impact of foreign workforce on the local households and corporations as well as on language, traditions and behaviour.

Brigadier Abdullah Alwan, Commander-in-Chief of the Ajman Police, told the gathering that the Ministry of Interior has a transparent strategy towards the workers and had contributed with the Ministry of Labour in figuring out many problems.

The MoI, he added, had launched many cultural programmes to educate workers about their rights and duties.

Lt. Colonel Dr Salah Al Gul, Director of the Office for Respect for Culture of Law, said foreign work force constitutes nearly 90 per cent of total manpower in the private sector. A labour report indicates that there are 3.1 million workers from 202 countries of diverse cultural backgrounds, employed by 260,000 firms.

“Addressing labour challenges requires energy, time and huge financial and administrative resources,” he said.

Mohammed Ahmed Mubarak of Labour Office in Dubai highlighted major concerns the MoL is facing and initiatives it has launched to address them.

“The MoL’s prime objective is to put in place a favourable, balanced environment that serves interests of both employers and workers in line with local laws and international conventions of relevance,” he said.