Emirati unemployment on the rise

Emirati unemployment on the rise

Do you think there should be quotas? Kipp asked, and you answered. Here are the results of our poll.

January 12, 2011 1:28 by Eva Fernandes

Emiratisation is one of the catch phrases of the moment thanks to all the recent, if somewhat confusing, amendments being made to UAE law. The drive to increase the number of Emiratis in the workforce highlights what is developing into a real issue for the country’s natives; with over half of the local population under 20 years old, and many approaching the right age to join the workforce, how can we integrate a greater number of Emiratis into the private sector?

One of the factors hindering Emiratisation efforts is surely the Emirati preferences to work in the public sector thanks to the generous benefits government jobs promise. In a nation-wide survey that surveyed 2,267 local students about their opinions and attitudes towards the UAE job market, Emirates 24|7 reports the majority of students would prefer to work in the government sector because of the high salaries, special perks, and the security they’d be guaranteed by the public sector.

But experts are warning that (for the very same reasons) the public sector has become saturated with far too many employees in management posts. That has resulted in federal bodies spending the majority of their budget on salaries; figures released earlier by the FNC’s finance committee show that the Ministry of Interior spends 92 per cent of its budget on salaries. With Emiratis constituting at least 60 percent of federal employees, governments have been increasing pressure on private sector employers to hire more Emiratis and on Emiratis to opt to join the private sector.

An issue that has become more pressing no doubt, given recent figures on unemployment from the FNC that show that unemployment among Emiratis has reached almost 13 percent with a significant levels of unemployment among women and the youth.

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Tags: dubai emiratisation, Emiratisation, emiratisation private companies, labour law changes, private sector emiratisation, uae emiratisation, uae employer changes, uae employers, uae employment law, uae labour law, uae labour law change, uae labour law emiratisation, uae law change, what emiratisation means for employers, what is emiratisation

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1 Comment

mohammed on January 16, 2011 9:02 pm

I believe there is a misconception in this report that says

Quote
” One of the factors hindering Emiratisation efforts is surely the Emirati preferences to work in the public sector thanks to the generous benefits government jobs promise”
Unquote.

Who said and what makes it a belief that government sector is unnecessarily generous as if its staff benefits policies were made on purpose to just enrich people.

The fact is that government sector is the true benchmark for wages in the UAE. what this report is talking about on how low paid private sector is just a reflection of the cheap labor from outside the country and not the true reflection of economic situation of the country.