UAE workweek to be Monday through Friday

DUBAI, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES » The United Arab Emirates said Tuesday its official workweek will move to Monday to Friday, a significant change that brings the Islamic nation home to major financial institutions in line with Western schedules.

The decision, which is to take effect next month, makes the Gulf Arab federation one of the few countries in the Middle East to operate on Western hours instead of on a Sunday through Thursday week. Lebanon and Turkey also follow a Monday-friday workweek.

The long-rumored shift comes as the UAE, home to the coastal emirates of Dubai and Abu Dhabi, seeks to bolster its business and tourist appeal while emerging from the crisis of the coronavirus pandemic and facing stiffer regional competition, particularly with Saudi Arabia.

Skyscraper-studded Dubai has attracted a variety of Western multinational firms over the years.