ABU DHABI, 6th December, 2018 (WAM) -- Nasser bin Thani Al Hamli, Minister of Human Resources and Emiratisation, has issued a collective labour dispute resolution.

The resolution, which includes the definition of a dispute, ways of settlement, and relevant operational procedures and legal penalties, will be published in the latest issue of the Official Gazette.

It defines a "collective labour dispute" is any dispute between an employer and a worker related to basic labour rights, as stated in a contract of employment for all workers or a group of workers in an establishment. The number of workers in a collective dispute should not be under 100.

According to the resolution, employers and workers should settle their collective disputes firstly through direct negotiation, followed by mediation, conciliation and arbitration, according to the stated procedures in the resolution and other relevant resolutions.

Workers must inform the employer in writing about any collective dispute to initiate a solution. The employer and workers should then inform the "Customer Happiness Centres" in writing, or through a call centre, or through the operations room during the same day of the dispute or the next day if it is not possible. Workers are not allowed to stop working or close their facility before all settlement methods have been exhausted.

The resolution points out that if a dispute occurs due to a violation of the rights of employers or workers, relevant authorities at the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation must undertake the required legal procedures.

According to the resolution, a clear violation of an article of the law or the executive regulation can be considered a cause of a collective labour dispute, along with violations of the mediation or conciliation agreement, and not responding to a call by the conciliation centre or commission, or not committing to the arbitration commission decision.

The "Fast Response Room" of the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation monitors collective labour disputes and reports them to the ministry, according to their degree of urgency. It also conducts quarterly reports on all collective labour disputes.

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