Dubai Lawyers: Is a non-competition agreement legal?

I am 20 years old. I have been working in a company in Dubai for a year. A month ago, my company made me sign a non-competition agreement which mentioned that I cannot work with any competitor in the UAE for three years after I leave the company. My employment contract signed with the company does not include the non-competition clause and the same is expiring next year. My question here is: Is the company entitled by law to ask me to sign such a clause after signing the employment contract without such a clause? Someone in the labour ministry told me that as per the UAE Labour Law, I am not supposed to sign such a letter since I am only 20. Please advise.

Article 127 of Federal Labour Law 8 of 1980 states: “Where the employer allows his worker to become acquainted with the employer’s client or to become familiar with the secrets of his business, the employer may require him to refrain, after the termination of his contract, from competing with him or participating in any enterprise competing with his business. Such an agreement shall be valid only on the condition that the worker is at least 21 years of age at the time of its conclusion and that the agreement is limited, as regards the time, the place and the nature of the business, to the extent necessary to safeguard the employer’s lawful interest”. Therefore, the competition clause which the questioner has signed is invalid because the worker shall be at least 21 years of age for signing such a clause. Therefore, the competition letter signed by the questioner will be considered null and void.

Compensation for unpaid salary

I have worked in a company in Dubai for one-and-a-half years under a limited contract. The company has not paid my salary for more than three months. Therefore I submitted my resignation and filed a complaint before the Ministry of Labour to claim my labour rights and overdue salary. The complaint is pending before the Ministry of Labour. My employer also filed a counter complaint against me asking the ministry to impose a one-year ban on me for the reason that I am the one who broke the limited contract before its expiry date. My complaint will be transferred to the labour court, as per the ministry. My questions are: Can I claim compensation from my company as I could not pay the rental fees on time? Can I get my sponsorship transferred to a new company? According to my employer, the Ministry of Labour will put a one-year ban on me for breaking the limited contract. Please advise me.

Resignation because of non-payment of the worker’s salary is deemed to be arbitrary dismissal, according to the Dubai Supreme Court, and the employer shall compensate the employee for the arbitrary dismissal based on the court decision. Therefore, the questioner shall ask the employer for compensation for the arbitrary dismissal along with the other labour rights and overdue salary. As for the question on the transfer of sponsorship as per the Ministry of Labour (Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation), if the worker failed to get his salaries for more than two months, the ministry will transfer his sponsorship to a new company or he will be provided with a work permit for six months which can be extended to another six months till his case is settled by the labour court. The ministry will decide and apply the rules as per the court judgement.

Questions answered by advocate Mohammad Ebrahim Al Shaiba of Al Shaiba Advocates and Legal Consultants

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