Abu Dhabi — Mubasher: Abu Dhabi will provide a ‘happiness card’ for low-income labourers, who have not received their salaries on time.
The unpaid workers could use the card to pay for food, transport, legal guidance, and other costs until cases with their firms are resolved.
The Abu Dhabi Judicial Department’s move is aimed to provide financial support and legal counsel for labourers whose wages are withheld, The National reported.
Set to be available in the next few months, the card will be granted by a judge to eligible workers for use until their problems are resolved.
In 2017, the UAE’s prosecutors saw around 10,000 labour disputes, excluding 6,000 group cases, where companies have collapsed or employers had run away, leaving labourers earning less than AED3,000 per month with no wages, according to The National.
However, the number of labour cases declined 40% last year compared to 2016 with 16,897 cases were brought before the Abu Dhabi courts.
The judicial department of the UAE’s capital and biggest sheikhdom is also working with the Department of Transport and hospitals to include costs in the card.
It is worth noting that labour disputes are generally settled at the UAE's Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation, while unresolved cases are sent to the court for a judicial decision.
The ‘happiness card’ is one in a slew of initiatives seeking to better resolve disputes between companies and workers.
The GCC nation amended the Wage Protection System two years ago to allow authorities to cancel work permits and close companies, which were 10 days late in paying wages.
If the companies failed to pay the wages in the following 60 days, they are also fined up at AED 5,000 for each unpaid employee.
