80,000 checks to curb violation of midday break rule

The Ministry of Labour carries out about 80,000 sudden visits to work sites of private companies to ensure that they are complying with the order to give mid-day break from 12.30pm to 3pm for workers, according to Mohammed bin Daukhain, director of the government communications at the ministry.

The mid-day break rule will apply from June 15 to  September 15.

Speaking to Emirates24/7, Daukhain said, besides the mid-day break rule, the decision to reduce working hours by two hours will also be implemented during Ramadan.

Companies exempted from reducing working hours during Ramadan will also be visited to ensure implementation of the mid-day break rule, he added.

Workers seeking to complain about non-implementation of the mid-day break rule can contact the ministry’s call centre or send a fax to the ministry or register their complaint at any of the six labour care centres in the UAE.

Workers seeking to complain about non-implementation of the mid-day break rule or reduced Ramadan working hours can also go in person to any of the 14 offices of the Ministry of Labour in the country.

Companies violating the two rules will be fined Dh15,000 per worker, bin Daukhain said.

The ministry relies on sudden visits and complaints by workers to control non-implementation of the two rules, he added.

Branch offices of some companies sometimes fail to implement such rules because they have not received instructions from the headquarters or a new foreman may not have understood the instructions, bin Daukhain said.

When a violation of such rules happen, the ministry’s inspection committee submits a report to the legal affairs unit of the ministry that compels the offending company to give a written pledge not to break the rules again.

If these rules are broken again, the company is referred to the public prosecution and then to the court which will impose the fine.

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