Gulf News

Visa no issue for maternity leave

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I have worked in a company in Dubai for 14 months. I am on my husband’s sponsorshi­p. Two months ago, I completed my annual leave period. Currently, I am seven months’ pregnant and I have some questions in this regard. Am I entitled to maternity leave though I am not under the company’s sponsorshi­p and am working in the company under a temporary work permit from the Labour Ministry? According to my company, if a woman works in a company but remains to be under husband’s sponsorshi­p, she is not entitled to maternity leave as per the ministry’s rules. With my 14 months of service, what is supposed to be my maximum maternity leave period as per the UAE Labour Law? Article 30 of Federal Law No 8 of 1980 states: A female worker shall be entitled to maternity leave with full pay for a period of 45 days, including the period preceding and the period following her confinemen­t, on the condition that she has been in her employer’s service for a continuous period of not less than one year. If she has not completed the previously mentioned period of service, she shall be entitled to maternity leave with half pay. On the expiry of her maternity leave, a female worker may be absent from her work without pay for a maximum period of 100 consecutiv­e or non-consecutiv­e days if such absence is due to an illness preventing her from resuming her work and if the illness is confirmed by a medical certificat­e issued by the competent health authority or if the authority concerned confirms that the illness was caused by the women’s work or confinemen­t. Finally, as per the UAE Labour Law, a woman employee is entitled to maternity leave even if she is not on the company’s visa as long as she has the official work permit from the authority concerned.

Same premises, two tenancy contracts

I signed a two-year tenancy contract with a real estate office for a villa in Dubai more than a month ago. I paid the rent amount through postdated cheques. The real estate office encashed the first cheque but has not handed over the villa till date on the pretext that it is under maintenanc­e. I have come to know that the issue is that the old tenant has refused to vacate the villa due to a dispute with the real estate office. I asked the said office to cancel my tenancy contract since I cannot wait anymore and need the accommodat­ion immediatel­y. I asked them to stop encashing the next cheque but the real estate office refused. Is the real estate office entitled to encash the cheque when it cannot honour the contract? Can I approach the police or the Public Prosecutio­n to stop the real estate office from encashing the cheque? Does the real estate office have the right to sign a tenancy contract with me when they had already signed a tenancy contract for the same premises with another tenant? This case comes under the jurisdicti­on of the Rent Court and the questioner may not approach the police or the Public Prosecutio­n to stop the cheque encashment. He shall immediatel­y file a rental case before the Rent Court and ask it to cancel the tenancy contract and order the return of all cheques to him on the basis that the landlord has not honoured the contractua­l commitment to the questioner and has flouted the rental law by signing two tenancy contracts for the same premises. Finally, the questioner has the right to file a criminal complaint with the Public Prosecutio­n against the real estate office manager for cheating the questioner by signing a tenancy contract with the questioner for the already occupied premises.

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