Employees in the UAE among the most hard-working in the world

People in the UAE are among the hardest working globally and do the longest hours per week as the pandemic has changed the 9 to 5 workplace culture.

According to a Business Name Generator (BNG) study, the UAE is the world’s third hardest-working country. As per the study, 46.5 per cent of workers are logging 49 or more hours per week in UAE. While the average paid work hours per week total 52.6 in the UAE.

In the list of 150 countries, Malta tops as a staggering 91 per cent of workers spend 49 or more hours per week, the highest out of all countries studied.

Malta is followed by Bhutan, the UAE, Bangladesh, Congo, Mauritius, Lesotho, Maldives, Pakistan and Lebanon.

In addition to its data, BNG included data from the International Labour Organisation on average working hours and the number of workers that regularly work overtime in each country.

The study noted that the modern work environment “has brought about many benefits, such as greater flexibility and the ability to work from anywhere, it has also raised questions about the culture of overworking and its impact on employees.”

SA Butt, a new resident of Dubai who works for a logistics company, puts in nearly nine hours every day and some extra hours sometimes during the month.

“The additional hours that I put in help me to pay off my credit card bills as well dining out. Sometimes, I also remit more money to my family to meet their expenses for major occasions such as Eid and weddings in the relatives. The additional income that I earn after working extra hours helps my family in my home country to meet their expenses,” said the new resident.

Another Dubai resident Kashif Ahmed, who works as a technician in a prominent local company, works for nine hours, but he is asked to stand by for a call in case of any emergency every alternative weekend as his company handles numerous local projects.

“Even though I don’t get urgent calls very often, I still can’t go out too far from my location because I know if I am called, there is certainly a situation where I have to reach as soon as possible. Thus, though I am at home, it feels like I am about to go on duty,” he said.

Deepa Sud, CEO, Plum Jobs, said working lives are extremely fast-paced because employers and customers want a quick turnaround to their needs. And this, in turn, has started to take its toll on employees who must meet deadlines and targets. In most cases, organisations have restructured to be more cost-effective, resulting in employees working longer hours.

“The concept of a 9 – 5 job no longer exists. The definition of smart work is very subjective; however, most people would agree that working hard is about long hours with less efficient processes and systems, whereas working smart is about using optimal processes, technology and the right skills and knowledge,” she said.

Sud added that hard work and smart work complement each other and are the foundation of success.

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