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Workers protest over cut in wages

ABU DHABI — A total of 50 workers from an Abu Dhabi-based construction company,

Who are still all on probation, have protested against the management of their company for ‘unfair’ deductions in their salaries.

The angry labourers approached the Ministry of Labour to complain against Al Oboor Development & Construction Company for deducting Dh150 from their monthly salary.

"Most of the workers in the company are very upset about this deduction," one of the workers told Khaleej Times. Explaining their plight, he said, their job offer letter mentions that they would be paid a monthly salary of Dh750. However, when they came to the UAE, they were given only Dh600 per month.

The complainants said a ministry official told them they have no right to complain because they have not completed their visa formalities and haven't even been issued a labour card as yet.

Speaking to this reporter, Nabeel Ahmed Abdullah, Al Oboor's PRO, clarified that the company recruited the workers to occupy certain technical vacancies, including carpenter and blacksmith. However, these workers did not prove to be too efficient during their three-month probation. So the company decided to employ them as ordinary workers and automatically reduced their salary to Dh600.

The company has the right to test the skills of its workers, added Abdullah, noting that he expected more than 60 per cent of the protesting workers to still agree to carry on working at the revised salary.

Ahmed Al Basher, legal adviser at the Disputes Department at the ministry, confirmed the company has the right to determine the capabilities of the workers it intends to employ and also to subsequently decide on their salaries accordingly.