The Pay With the amount of information in the media about the rate of population growth in Dubai anyone would think it was an emirate where the streets are paved with gold. Well, while it’s true that a lot of people are moving to Dubai for work, what is not true is that all jobs in Dubai pay fantastic salaries!
Those who work in Dubai work long hours for up to six days a week, and in certain industries salaries are impressive – but in other job sectors wages are on a par with or worse than the income that can be earned elsewhere. Therefore, those looking for jobs in Dubai should take care to do proper research and due diligence before committing themselves to a career move.
Salaries in Dubai are usually similar to or greater than those paid in western countries.
But because the region has no personal taxation, net income is usually much greater, which is one of the major attractions of working in Dubai. In addition to their salary, contract workers are awarded an ‘indemnity’ at the end of the contract period. The indemnity is usually based on basic salary excluding any bonuses. The indemnity can be a significant amount of money if you’ve been working in Dubai for a long time, and many people manage either to accumulate a reasonable financial cushion or to live the high life. If you’re clever and disciplined, you should be able to do some of both. The indemnity has nothing to do with insurance but is an end-of-contract bonus which is required by law to be paid to expatriate workers as a sort of ‘thank-you’ for being of service to the state. (It’s also known as ‘end of service benefits’.) Indemnity scales usually amount to 15 (in some cases 20) days of basic pay per year of employment for the first three years and thereafter a month’s salary per year of employment. Sometimes, Arab companies delay the payment of salaries, cash flow problems being passed on to their staff. In this event, you have little alternative but to wait.
Of course salary is not necessarily the be all and end all of job hunting – especially in Dubai where it’s usual for an employer to present a remuneration package offer to a potential candidate. Such a package may include a housing allowance, health care benefits and even money towards children’s education.
All the major recruitment companies have a base in Dubai as there is a large and expanding job market in the UAE. It is possible to use recruitment companies’ websites to get a feel for the jobs being offered and rates of pay available in your particular industry sector. Another way to get a feel for the level of income you could earn from a job in Dubai is by researching which employers from your industry are based in the UAE and then writing to their personnel department with your CV or resume and asking about suitable vacancies.
http://www.eyeofdubai.com/v1/articles/article_detail.asp?artid=415