UAE Publishes 6 Key Working Hours Rules Every Employee Must Know
- The UAE sets a maximum of 8 hours per day or 48 hours per week as the standard working limit for employees
- Workers in the UAE cannot be asked to work beyond their contracted hours without giving written consent first
- Remote workers in the UAE operate under separate rules that allow employers to set specific working hours with employee approval
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The United Arab Emirates has outlined six key rules governing working hours for employees across the country, covering daily limits, Ramadan schedules, remote work arrangements, and employee protections against overwork.
Under the rules, the maximum number of normal working hours is eight hours per day or 48 hours per week.
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The Cabinet holds the power to adjust these limits for specific economic sectors or labour categories, acting on proposals from the Minister and in coordination with relevant authorities.
Adjustments can cover daily working hours, rest periods, and hours during which work is entirely prohibited for certain groups of workers.
Travel time and Ramadan hours
Time spent commuting between home and the workplace does not count as working hours, except for certain worker categories as defined by the Executive Regulation of the Decree.
The rules also reserve the determination of Ramadan working hours for the Executive Regulation, meaning reduced hours during the holy month are addressed separately under that framework.
Employee consent and remote work
For full-time workers, neither the primary employer nor any secondary employer is permitted to demand work beyond what has been agreed in the employment contract without first obtaining the worker's written consent.
This protection applies regardless of whether the additional hours are requested by the original employer or another employer the worker may be engaged with under the terms of the Decree.
Where an employee chooses to work remotely, whether from within the UAE or from abroad, and the employer agrees to this arrangement, the employer may set specific working hours as part of the remote work terms.
This provision gives employers some flexibility in managing remote teams while keeping the arrangement subject to mutual agreement.
The rules form part of the UAE's broader labour legislation, which the government has updated in recent years to reflect changes in work patterns, including the growing adoption of flexible and remote working models across the country.
UAE publishes overtime pay rules for workers
Legit.ng earlier reported that the United Arab Emirates labour law places clear limits on how much overtime an employer can demand from workers and sets out the minimum pay that must follow when those extra hours are worked.
Source: Legit.ng
