A recent legal ruling in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) has seen a foreign woman ordered by the Ras Al Khaimah Civil Court to pay her former housekeeper a sum of 11,000 dirhams. The court found in favor of the Asian maid, who had claimed wrongful dismissal and non-payment of wages. In addition to the monetary award, the Gulf woman was also ordered to provide the dismissed employee with salary, allowance, and provident fund, and to cover court costs.
The maid had originally been employed on a salary of 1200 dirhams per month, and had lodged a claim against her former employer when her wages went unpaid. The court ultimately ruled in favor of the employee, awarding her 13,400 dirhams in compensation for annual leave allowance, end of service, travel ticket, wrongful termination allowance, and court costs.
The Gulf woman subsequently lodged an appeal against the court’s decision, arguing that the employee’s filing of the case had been illegal and that the matter should have been brought before the Labor Court. However, this appeal was dismissed by the Civil Court, which upheld the original ruling in favor of the maid. The woman was ordered to pay the 11,000 dirham sum to her former employee, with only minor modifications to the initial decision.
This legal case serves as a reminder of the importance of fair treatment and proper payment for domestic workers in the UAE. The country has taken steps in recent years to improve the legal status of these employees, but more work remains to be done to ensure that they are fully protected under the law.
