Job Discussion Forums

[Zoot]

tefllifer, you're right, the ban is imposed by the employer and almost always by the unscrupulous ones who already have a poor record.

The first step is to have the current Visa cancelled, then to get the Letter of No Objection (again an option that the employer may choose not to provide) and then the process of re-employment can begin. If a ban is put in place, then the only option is to leave the country for 6 months. This is the part the UAE needs to review with regard to its labor laws.

The secret is to ensure you're going to be given a 'Limited' contract according to the Ministry of Labor and this needs to be stated in an initial agreement or contract you may sign with the employer - the employer's contract is completely invalid and useless up to the point of having the MoL contract signed and sealed. That's the only way you can ensure some security if one of these unscrupulous and ineffective companies like CfBT because they then have to pay you 3 months should they decide to sack you.

I notice now that CfBT is looking to hire singles rather than people with children and this is how they got into trouble in their first year in the UAE - too many people who lurched from one weekend of partying to the next with little care about what happened in the 5 days between.

MAG pay out fully even if the staff they hire have no job security.

What about Sabis?

[ckhl]

And the rejoinder is - I speak from personal experience.
The cancelled visa is the important step to getting a new contract.
If you have finished your contract elsewhere and have a cancelled visa with no ban, then you should (note 'should') be able to proceed to a new employer

This is true. I too can speak from personal experience. ....
BUT..the new employer, at least in my case, required that I submit an NOC to be put in my file. And my previous employer did tell me that if I transferred the visa rather than get it cancelled I would forego repatriation tickets and shipping allowance.

[Sunburnt Individual]

SABIS never took things outright but they go into your home as they please while you're there. There were several things missing from my place and a huge dirty set of footprints through my house. Their cover for this is "we had to perform some routine maintenance."

If you have an empty room because your roommate left, that can be used as "Hotel SABIS" anytime someone comes in from out of town. They also tell you to move any and all times of the year.

At the end of my year, I was taken to a school that I didn't work in and put in a closet with three accountants and laptop. They showed me a paper with an amount of money that they felt was owed me, but it was actually more than was owed me, so I pointed out the error and they made four phone calls to figure it out. The amount that I had figured was the correct amount.

We had to FIGHT for our letters of no objection, but we got them. Most of us couldn't have worked for them again because we were (unknown to us until we got there...) unqualified for the PPP positions.

[laylow]

I read all of your posts and am thankful for a website such as this to help us make important decisions.

However, regarding the 6-month visa ban in the Emirates and the NOC, some of you stated the ban has been eliminated. My question is why would there still be a need for an NOC if there were no ban? I also read a link that someone posted on a post.

While it was very alarming to hear employers express their dissatisfaction with the lifting of the ban as they seem to enjoy having employees who feel they must remain at all costs, can someone please tell me if this article referred to all jobs in the Emirates. Are you sure this ban elimination includes EFL Instructors?

Thanks again.

[Neutrino Girl]

http://www.thenational.ae/business/economy/confused-about-uae-labour-laws-answers-here

"Skilled workers

No longer need to obtain a no-objection certificate from an employer before taking on a new position."

[veiledsentiments]

But, are teachers considered "skilled workers"? When I hear that term, I think of trades like electricians, plumbers, mechanics, computer techs...

VS

[laylow]

I am not sure an EFL Instructor is considered a 'skilled worker'. That is my concern.

[Neutrino Girl]

I think there are only two classes of workers as defined by law, skilled and unskilled. At least that is all I have ever heard of here. I assume we are of the 'skilled' set, but who knows!

[veiledsentiments]

The problem is that it can be dangerous to assume anything in the Middle East. It is not that we are included with the "unskilled" but are we a separate group with separate rules? I remember newspaper discussion of labor rules and teachers and other professions would be exceptions. (usually in a way that benefited us...)

VS

[mimi_intheworld]