Dubai: With Eid Al Adha expected to fall on Sunday, June 16, UAE residents can expect a long holiday period, as per the latest announcement.
You may already be already planning on how you can maximise the leave to make the most out of it, but what happens in other cases when you have a working day that falls between a weekend and a public holiday? Can you apply for a leave on that day, to enjoy a longer, continuous holiday? And if so, will all the days be counted as part of your leave?
Scroll through social media nowadays, and you will see videos and posts on ‘sandwich leave’, claiming that if you take a one-day leave in between a weekend and public holiday, the entire number of days would be deducted from your leave allowance.
Is this true? Gulf News spoke with legal experts and human resources managers in the UAE, to find out what the labour law says and what the company practices and policies are that you should be aware of.
Employer’s rights to approve leave
According to Ayush Hans, legal counsel based in Dubai, Article 28(1) of the UAE Labour Law – Federal Decree Law No. 33 of 2021 Regarding the Regulation of Employment Relationships – guarantees an employee’s right to receive a day off with full pay during a public holiday as defined by a resolution of the UAE Cabinet.
“The law has provided entitlement to rest days, annual leaves and public holidays individually but to combine it all together, the employee will have to get the employer’s approval to take his annual leave. As per Article 29(4) of the Labour Law, the employer has the right to accept or reject an employee’s leave application according to the work requirements,” he said.
“Now, the question on whether the entire combination of the leave will be counted as an annual leave or not is a grey area. If companies would like to avoid any complications or potential complaints from employees at the Labor Claims and Advisory Centre, they could reject the leave application, while keeping in mind Article 29(2) of the law, which says that the employer cannot stop the employee from taking leaves for a period of more than two years. Or else, the companies can, in goodwill, accept the annual leave application and provide the public holiday and rest days’ entitlement separately,” he added.
The law has provided entitlement to rest days, annual leaves and public holidays individually but to combine it all together, the employee will have to get the employer’s approval to take his annual leave. As per Article 29(4) of the Labour Law, the employer has the right to accept or reject an employee’s leave application according to the work requirements.
Don’t apply for leave right before and after public holiday
However, Mohamed Elmasry, Associate at Al Suwaidi and Company Advocates and Legal Consultants, you should be careful not to apply for the leave before and after the public holiday, as that would bring into effect Article 29(7) of the Labour Law.
“Say, for example, that there is a three-day public holiday that starts on Tuesday and ends on Thursday. If I applied for a leave on Monday – just before the holiday starts – and applied for another leave for Friday – a day after the holiday ends - then the entire period will be calculated as an annual leave,” Elmasry said.
For example, there is a three-day public holiday that starts on Tuesday and ends on Thursday. If I applied for a leave on Monday – just before the holiday starts – and applied for another leave for Friday – a day after the holiday ends - then the entire period will be calculated as an annual leave.
7. The holidays prescribed by law or by agreement are included in the calculation of the annual leave period if they fall within the annual leave of the worker and they form a part thereof, unless the employment contract or the regulations in force at the establishment provide for anything that is more useful for the worker.
So, to recap, while you can apply for an annual leave to extend your holiday, it is up to the employer’s discretion on whether or not the grant it. And secondly, you should not take an annual leave before and after the public holiday or leave entitlement, because then the entire period will be considered as part of your annual leave.
What is your company’s policy on annual leave quota?
Another factor that comes into play in such situations is how the company policy allocates the annual leave quota for employees. Some companies may offer it as 22 working days, while others give it as 30 calendar days, according to Ahmed Elnaggar, Managing Partner at Elnaggar & Partners.
“Some companies may even have a policy that the annual leave needs to be taken in two parts per year, while others may ask employees to take it in one go every year,” he added.
Some companies may even have a policy that the annual leave needs to be taken in two parts per year, while others may ask employees to take it in one go every year.
All these factors can come into play when looking at how your leave will be calculated.
Naresh Moolchandani, Group Human Resources manager for a UAE-based company, who has worked in the industry for over 20 years, agreed and said that in cases where companies follow the 30-day annual leave quota, the company would count all the days as part of the annual leave.
“What we advise employees to do is to take a couple of days of leave after the public holiday ends, so it would count as two days of leave and also extend their holiday a little,” Moolchandani said.
What we advise employees to do is to take a couple of days of leave after the public holiday ends, so it would count as two days of leave and also extend their holiday a little.
Manu Sharma, who also works as an HR manager in Dubai, who has over 13 years of experience in the UAE, said that employees are best advised to always speak with their managers and the human resources department to find out what the company policy is regarding annual leave.
“Apply at least 30 days before your leave, so that your team as well as the HR department can make the necessary replacements. But whenever an employee joins our company, I make it a point to inform them of the annual leave policy, so that they do not deal with any confusion as to how their leave will be deducted from the quota,” he added.
Whenever an employee joins our company, I make it a point to inform them of the annual leave policy, so that they do not deal with any confusion as to how their leave will be deducted from the quota.
