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UAE: Firms that do not comply with 2% Emiratisation rule must pay Dh6,000 monthly for every unemployed citizen

Step aims at creating more than 12,000 job opportunities annually for citizens

The UAE Cabinet on Monday approved increasing the Emiratisation rate in the country to 2 per cent annually from high-skilled jobs in companies that employ 50 workers or more. The step aims at creating more than 12,000 job opportunities annually for citizens in all economic sectors.

The UAE Cabinet, chaired by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President, Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai, has adopted resolutions and incentives package to enhance the participation of Emirati talents in the private sector.

The resolutions come within NAFIS, the federal program that aims to increase the competitiveness of the Emirati workforce and to facilitate the private sector employment of UAE citizens.

Incentives and penalties

The incentives include reducing the service fees of the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation by 80 per cent for private sector establishments, which accomplish major achievements in terms of recruitment and training of Emirati citizens.

Non-compliant companies will have to pay an amount of Dh6,000 monthly, starting from January 2023, for every citizen who has not been employed.

Emiratisation drive

Data discussed in the meeting revealed that the total number of new Emiratis who joined the private sector since the launch of NAFIS in September 2021 till March 2022 amounted to 5,558, while the number of companies that hired new employees increased to 1,774.

NAFIS offers various benefits including the Emirati Salary Support Scheme where UAE citizens will be offered a one-year salary support of up to Dh8,000 per month during training and a monthly support of up to Dh5,000 will be paid for up to five years for university graduates.

The program provides UAE citizens specialised in fields such as coders, nurses and accountants with a top-up on their existing salaries.

The program also offers a subsidised five-year government-paid contribution on the company’s behalf against the cost of pension plans for Emirati staff and full support for the Emirati’s contribution across the first five years of their employment.

NAFIS also offers Private Sector Child Allowance Scheme. The scheme is monthly grant made to Emirati staff working in the private sector of up to Dh800 per child up to a maximum of Dh3,200 per month.

Dr Abdulrahman Al Awar, Minister of Human Resources and Emiratisation, said that the benefits offered by NAFIS support Emirati talents in the private sector.

Dr. Al Awar added that reducing 80 per cent of the service fees of the Ministry for establishments that accomplish substantial achievements in terms of recruitment and training of Emirati citizens will further contribute to achieve NAFIS objectives.

Al Awar stressed that the new resolutions will increase the participation of Emirati talents in the private sector by creating more than 12 thousand jobs annually, with an annual increase of 10 percent for the 5 coming years.

Ghannam Al Mazrouei, Secretary-General of the Emirati Talent Competitiveness Council, said that NAFIS ensures the efficiency of the Emiratisation approach, while offering significant incentives to private sector establishments that achieve substantial milestones in terms of recruitment and training of Emirati citizens.

Al Mazrouei expected that private sector establishments will commit to the new resolutions and will increase Emiratisation by 2 percent for high-skilled jobs until achieving the 10 percent target by the 2026, stressing that private sector establishments will benefit from NAFIS.

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The NAFIS data indicate that the number of citizens registered on the platform and eligible to benefit from the NAFIS initiatives reached 25,876, and that the number of job opportunities on the platform reached 2,524, while the number of beneficiaries increased to 4,074 people.

To fulfill its goals of boosting the competitiveness and efficiency of UAE citizens, NAFIS developed two bundles of initiatives as part of the "Projects of the 50". The first was released in September 2021, followed by the second in March 2022.

The first bundle included the "Emirati Salary Support Scheme", the "Merit Program", the "Pension Program", the "Child Allowance Scheme", the "Unemployment Benefit", and the "Job Offers Program".

The second bundle of initiatives was launched in March 2022, which focuses on training programs including the "Talent Program" to develop specialised vocational skills for Emiratis through internationally recognised certifications, and the "National Healthcare Program", which aims to upskill 10,000 UAE nationals in the field of nursing and healthcare via paid scholarships. The 'Apprentice Program,' which provides training and professional development opportunities in the private and semi-government sectors, and the 'Vocational Counseling Program,' which provides UAE nationals with access to career coaching and counseling services were also included in this package of initiatives.