NEWS FROM THE UAE
SOURCE : THE NATIONAL

Labourers receive Dh15m in wages due to workers

DUBAI - OCT 11: Workers have received Dh15 million (US$4m) in back wages since February thanks to a police unit that intervenes on behalf of unpaid employees, according to a senior official in the emirate.

“During the financial crisis several companies were going through difficult times, which resulted in the delays of salaries, sometimes only for a week or two,” said Col Mohammed al Mur, director general of the Dubai Police general department of legal and disciplinary control.

The money was recovered after action by the centre for the monitoring of human trafficking, which falls under his department.

“But as our priority is to protect workers we had to intervene and help workers regain their rights,” he said. “We gave the company a maximum of a week to pay workers their outstanding dues.”

The centre did not disclose the number of workers who received money or the number of companies that had withheld salaries.

The estimated expatriate workforce registered at the Ministry of Labour is 4.1 million, about half of whom live in Dubai.

Market surveys show the average monthly salary for construction workers to be between Dh700 and Dh1,200.

“The UAE Government will not allow any form of exploitation to take place on its soil,” Col al Mur said.

“We have made it clear to companies that we will not tolerate any delays or non-payments of salaries, and violating companies have been referred to court and we will continue to do so in the future.”

Maurizio Bussi, the deputy regional director for the International Labour Organisation, praised the moves to protect workers’ wages but called for more transparency.

“To return Dh15 million in unpaid salaries is in principle a good move and there is clearly a lot of effort done by the UAE authorities in terms of wage protection,” he said.

“But to evaluate the real impact of this move on workers’ conditions we need to look at it in comparative terms.

“We need to know the nature of these payments, if they are full payments or partial as well as the size and scope of the trend of unpaid salaries in the country.”

Samir Khosla, the vice chairman of Dynamic Staffing Services, a recruitment company, said the initiative would give much-needed support to workers in difficult financial conditions.

“Many workers do not have a choice but to accept delays in salaries as they are burdened with debt to unscrupulous recruitment agencies back home,” Mr Khosla said.

The centre for monitoring human trafficking was set up in February under 2006 federal guidelines, which prescribe penalties that include fines of up to Dh1 million.

It also works to train law enforcement authorities to deal with victims, as well as to open channels with regional and international organisations that combat modern slavery.

“There are no slavery cases among the temporary workforce in our country, and we are closely monitoring the conditions of this workforce to ensure that they are enjoying the rights they have been entitled in the law,” said Lt Col Sultan al Jamal, the director of the centre.

There are various departments within the centre, including one that monitors the working and living conditions of the expatriate workforce.

The department has two divisions – one dealing with inspections and precautionary campaigns and the other with labour protests.

It works closely with the Ministry of Labour and the Permanent Committee for Labour Affairs in Dubai (PCLAD).

Since it was set up, the centre has received 344 worker complaints, 76 per cent of which were related to non-payment of salaries, according to the centre’s records.

Workers from Asian countries submitted more than 85 per cent of the complaints, followed by Arab nationals, who made up 11 per cent.

Forty of the 69 protests staged in Dubai since February were because of non-payment of salaries.

“However, in about 50 per cent of these protests the workers had not voiced their grievances through the official channels such as the Labour Ministry, the PCLAD or us and decided instead to take to the street,” Col al Mur said.

“And many protests occurred because the workers were not aware of the rules and regulations.

“So more awareness is needed among the workers on how to get their rights through the proper channels and about the country’s regulations.”

The centre has also carried out more than 1,100 inspections on labour camps to ensure the workers’ welfare.

In May, the Ministry of Labour, in co-operation with the Central Bank, introduced the Wage Protection System, by which workers salaries are automatically paid into their bank accounts.

It allows the ministry to check if a company is defaulting on salaries or making unlawful deductions from the salaries through online notifications.

The system currently covers more than 500,000 workers paid through banks and financial institutions. By the first half of next year, all private companies will have to pay salaries through these institutions.

Also in May, the ministry launched the “My Salary” initiative, which allows workers to complain anonymously about unpaid or delayed salaries online or through a helpline, 800665.

Previously, if a worker wanted to complain about his salary, he had to file a complaint at the ministry and then appear with the employer at a hearing.

Many workers, fearful of losing their jobs, found this system intimidating.

In the first month of the “My Salary” initiative, 331 companies were reported for non-payment of salaries, six of which were referred to the Public Prosecution, according to the Ministry of Labour.

Tenants of illegal dwellings are evicted

ABU DHABI - OCT 11: The municipality has evicted the residents of 13 villas and other buildings, with a warning to others to make sure their homes fall within the law.

The homes in Al Zafarana, near the junction of Muroor Road and 21st Street, were illegally partitioned or had unauthorised extensions, said Awaidha al Qubaisi, the director of municipal services.

“We again urge tenants to make sure that their rented housing units are not in violation to avoid such problems,” he added. He did not say how many people had been evicted.

Most cases were partitions found in older villas, but extensions erected on rooftops were also a problem.

The municipality is compiling an inventory of offending buildings. Checks in Al Zafarana and Al Bateen have been completed.

“Violations have been referred to the municipality court to take the necessary actions,” said Mr al Qubaisi.

He said the campaign was in the interests of the residents’ safety.

The clampdown has been going on for more than a year, but, unlike Dubai, the municipality does not have a “one villa, one family” rule.

Abu Dhabi Municipality requires all separate housing units to be properly partitioned and fitted with gas, water and electricity meters.

Dubai aims to put more taxis on roads

DUBAI - OCT 11: Flagging down a taxi should become easier next year as more cabs are introduced in what is expected to be a major overhaul of the industry.

Mansoor Rhama al Falasi, acting director of the franchising and enforcement department at the Public Transport Agency, said a 10-year plan would see changes made to the service throughout 2010, including an increase in the estimated 7,600 vehicles currently on the road.

The plan, being put together by the consultants Booz & Co, will look at every aspect of the taxi industry.

Top of the agenda would be fares, regulations and driver training, said Mr al Falasi. “We release new plate numbers for taxis through auctions,” he said, “but, in the future, that way of increasing a fleet may change.

“This study will cover the supply and demand for the sector until 2020 and will look at the regulations, rules, and operational plans for franchise companies.

“It will affect the guy on the street as it will make it easier for them to get a taxi.

“The consultant is also studying the customer and every single aspect of the system, including the intelligence system we have, for example, in our call centre.”

In April, the Roads and Transport Authority (RTA) introduced a minimum cab fare of Dh10 per trip and a starting fee of Dh20 for journeys from Dubai to Sharjah.

Waiting time was priced at 50 fils per minute, in addition to distance travelled. Previously, the first 10 minutes of the journey did not incur a time charge.

Mr al Falasi said: “When you introduce a new fare it is not going to be a long-term structure.

“We are going to have a review on those fares and maybe increase or decrease them. We are in the process of reviewing these.”

The Booz plan will cover both taxis and limousine services. A quarter of the city’s service are limousines, which charge higher fares than standard taxis.

“They belong to franchise companies who send the limousine cars to hotels, shopping malls and are also on call,” said Mr al Falasi.

“We are reconsidering the franchise for the limousine sector but we are waiting for the masterplan to see if it is correct to do so or not.”

Issues under review include how many cars should be in a limousine fleet, whether or not a handful of companies should have the entire limousine franchise and the possibility of more people being allowed to buy limousine licences.

The RTA, which has an eight-strong team overseeing the project, will receive the plan at the end of the year, with a view to implenting the changes by the end of 2010. A new plan will be commissioned in 2020.

The RTA has already made some changes. Following complaints about malodorous cabs, all of Dubai Taxi Corporation’s (DTC) 3,503 taxis were installed with air fresheners last month.

Yousef Mohammed al Ali, director of DTC’s fleet operations department, said the air filters in the cars’ air-conditioning systems were now being replaced every three months.

As a trial, some taxis have been fitted with technology limiting their top speed to 100kph.

The RTA also established a dedicated fleet of taxis that are allowed to pick up passengers only in Bur Dubai and Deira. Both areas had previously been avoided by taxi drivers, because of their heavy traffic and the prospect of only earning small fares.

Mr al Falasi said despite the opening of the Dubai Metro, “the market is still there for taxi drivers”.

But Bali Suriya, 43, a taxi driver from Sri Lanka, was concerned that more taxis on the roads would make his job more difficult.

However, he believed that his car offered a quicker alternative to mass public transport.

“Some people don’t have time to get buses or the Metro. I was told it takes a long time to get to where they want to on the Metro,” he said.

Ali Safar, from India, who has been driving a taxi in Dubai for nine years, said he had witnessed major changes in the business.

“Before we were happy to stay around Deira and Bur Dubai,” he said. “But traffic got so bad we just didn’t go down there because it would take an hour or more to get a fare of Dh10.

“Now the Metro is there and there are the dedicated taxis for that part of town too. I don’t go the full length of Sheikh Zayed as much because some people will take the Metro.”

Mustafa Ali, 29, from Pakistan, said: “There are not as many people here as last year so it’s difficult to find fares. If there are more taxis on the roads, it will be more difficult to make money so I hope it will get busier. Now we have the exhibitions that bring lots of people here.

“The summer was not too good for tourists and now the Metro is taking customers who would usually go the full length of Sheikh Zayed Road.”

Shane Conners, 39, who regularly visits Dubai from London on business, said the standard of taxis was good compared with other cities.

“It is cheaper to get around than other cities but, sometimes, the language can be a problem and the drivers are not too sure about where they are going,” he said.

Sammer Anas, 27, a marketing executive from Egypt, who has lived in Dubai for three years, said: “Taxis are easy to get now. I don’t know if there are more on the streets or less people taking them.

“It also depends where you are getting them. In Media City, it is easy to find one during the day, but in Satwa at 5pm it is nearly impossible. Still, it’s easier than last year.”