# I'm in a Pickle



## James321 (Nov 6, 2011)

I'm having huge regrets about quitting my 24 year job in the UK and moving to Dubai, the company I'm working for have quite possibly THE worst HR dept you would ever not wish to meet.

My contract included 1 month in a hotel to assist with joining and 1 month car loan.

You would think that would be enough, however, passport and visa are finally given to me at the 30 day point so no time to open a bank account and find somewhere to live.
The visa has the wrong information so needs to be returned, I cannot open a bank account without the visa or find somewhere to live.

The hire car doesn't exist and was a complete lie, I have no means of getting to Abu Dhabi to get a driving licence (company is based in Abu Dhabi so is my visa).

I am now having to pay to extend my stay in the hotel as the company say it's now my problem.

I guess this is standard for a UAE company but I'm now stuck with no where to live, I don't have the funds to pay for the hotel and to try and rent an apartment, I don't have a visa or driving licence.

Tempted to get on the next flight out of here and save me some money.

What a shame I sacrificed a good career to work for such a pathetic company.


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## wazza2222 (Sep 7, 2011)

*Yikes!*



James321 said:


> I'm having huge regrets about quitting my 24 year job in the UK and moving to Dubai, the company I'm working for have quite possibly THE worst HR dept you would ever not wish to meet.
> 
> My contract included 1 month in a hotel to assist with joining and 1 month car loan.
> 
> ...



It's not in the JAFZA is it? (sorry, I know this isn't a joking matter but the company my wife works for has an HR dept that can rival yours!)

Best wishes
Waz


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## James321 (Nov 6, 2011)

No, it's a relatively new aviation company based in Abu Dhabi, don't really want to give the name away on here for fear of the internet police hunting me down.


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## katiepotato (Apr 29, 2008)

So sorry to hear you've had a such a bad experience. In defence of my profession, not all HR departments in the UAE are like yours!

Can you talk to your line manager or another senior employee who would be able to support you? Ultimately your company want you to be concentrating on work. If you tell them the level of your concerns and the fact you are contemplating leaving as a result you might find that they become much more flexible. 

If provision of a car was in your contract, push for it. These things are not set in stone but they should not have included something they had no intention of providing.

Will your company provide letters to the bank / a potential landlord confirming your employment and stating that your residence visa is in process? It is not a long-term solution but will help you to start taking the first steps to gain some security (if you decide to stay of course). 

Best of luck with whatever you decide


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## nm62 (Dec 11, 2008)

Why are you living in Dubai's hotel?
At the end of the day if you have to pay the rent yourself.... why not rent a hotel apartment for a long term in Abu Dhabi itself... 
Long term hotel/ service apartments are cheaper in specific areas and it will save you commuting time and money as well!


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## dizzyizzy (Mar 30, 2008)

James321 said:


> I'm having huge regrets about quitting my 24 year job in the UK and moving to Dubai, the company I'm working for have quite possibly THE worst HR dept you would ever not wish to meet.
> 
> My contract included 1 month in a hotel to assist with joining and 1 month car loan.
> 
> ...


Deep breaths. Sounds very frustrating but also unfortunately these kind of things happen very often here. I work for a fairly decent company in JAFZA and I finally got my passport with my visa renewal after almost 8 weeks (and about 2 days to go home for my Christmas break!).

As others suggest, try talking to your manager and see if he can help you. The company says is now your problem, which is not true since you are being given a visa that is incorrect and that is THEIR problem not yours. Be polite but firm.


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## dizzyizzy (Mar 30, 2008)

PS You are already here so is a bit easier to see if you can make it work with them  first weeks, or even months, with a new employer in the UAE (specially those with useless PRO's or during Ramadan time) can be VERY frustrating. You'd be surprised if you read how many similar stories we've had here in the forum. I know is no consolation but if it helps you are not the only one nor will be the only one who's have had a rough beginning with their new employers! Hope things normalize soon.


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## wandabug (Apr 22, 2010)

KP is correct, as long as your visa is being processed a letter from your employer stating this will be accepted to find somewhere to live and for DEWA etc. There are buses to AD or a taxi will cost about dhs.250. Ask if they will give you post dated chqs for your rent till you get your chq book, or a loan which can be taken from your wages.


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## Mr Rossi (May 16, 2009)

An all too common scenario, your post needs included in the sticky for others that think coming here is the answer to everything.

As for your own predicament, you either need to ship out or "Dubai up" - get in the face of HR direct and demand they sort out. Your visa - don't reason or explain, shout at them constantly you want this sorted NOW! Demand the mobile number of someone in HR, phone them every hour saying you want this sorted now. The car - you want the car and you want it sorted NOW. Even when they are coming back to you with explanations like the office is closed simply reply "Not good enough - sort it!" Whoever says it's your problem and not paying the hotel - say no, this is what is going to happen and you are going to sort it.

It's a sad state of affairs but certain people will only respond to acting like a bullying, petulant child. If things are as bad as they are, you have nothing to loose.


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## Gavtek (Aug 23, 2009)

Mr Rossi said:


> It's a sad state of affairs but certain people will only respond to acting like a bullying, petulant child. If things are as bad as they are, you have nothing to loose.


This.

Also, this may not apply to your case, but I've seen personal examples of this, but a lot of the people they have working in HR here are paid little, don't have any benefits, and when they're put in charge of sorting out the relocation of an ex-pat who is getting stuff they didn't get, they get a bit jealous and purposely become unhelpful.

You should probably accept some of the responsibility though, if you've been here a month, you've had plenty of time to plan for all of this, identify a place to live long-term, start the process of sorting out a bank account.

Also, here's a tip to save you further headache: "system is down, come back later" doesn't mean that the system is down and you should come back later, it actually means "I can't be bothered dealing with you, go away and let me play solitaire in peace". If you hear this, sit down and refuse to move until you have been seen to.

As mentioned above, take your concerns to your manager and make sure you emphasise how much of your time this is taking up when you should be concentrating on work.


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## wazza2222 (Sep 7, 2011)

*Awesome!*



Gavtek said:


> Also, here's a tip to save you further headache: "system is down, come back later" doesn't mean that the system is down and you should come back later, it actually means "I can't be bothered dealing with you, go away and let me play solitaire in peace". If you hear this, sit down and refuse to move until you have been seen to.


Dubai Islamic Bank are batting 1000 (as the baseball fraternity would say)
Four branch visits and four times the 'sysem is down'

Funny as a fight these locals, start at 11 and finish at 2 and do nothing in between:behindsofa:
No wonder they are so aggressive on the SZR, they must be VERY tired...


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## Mr Rossi (May 16, 2009)

Gavtek said:


> I've seen personal examples of this, but a lot of the people they have working in HR here are paid little, don't have any benefits, and when they're put in charge of sorting out the relocation of an ex-pat who is getting stuff they didn't get, they get a bit jealous and purposely become unhelpful.


I have experienced this first hand - treated like a step mother for the first 6 months until I resigned myself to the fact being a buddy boss letting them take the piss. 

The OP's visa is wrong? Coincedence? I'd offer evens at best. Also it's not uncommon for passports, visas, documents etc that were previously "at municipality being processed" to show up within the hour when they realise the potential serious sh!te they'll be in if it came out your papers have been in their drawer for a week.


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## wazza2222 (Sep 7, 2011)

Too true! the threat of a visit to the Ministry of Labour is a fantastic motivator to some of our less motivated ex-pat colleagues... Earth will move!


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## Rutilius (Jan 22, 2011)

Mr Rossi said:


> ....... if it came out your papers have been in their drawer for a week.



Or lost someplace in that abyss behind the front seat of the Company PRO's car!


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## Kawasutra (May 2, 2011)

James321 said:


> I'm having huge regrets about quitting my 24 year job in the UK and moving to Dubai, the company I'm working for have quite possibly THE worst HR dept you would ever not wish to meet.
> 
> My contract included 1 month in a hotel to assist with joining and 1 month car loan.
> 
> ...



You are not the only one facing problems like that, if it helps you...!


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## ladynotingreen (Aug 5, 2011)

James321 said:


> I'm having huge regrets about quitting my 24 year job in the UK and moving to Dubai, the company I'm working for have quite possibly THE worst HR dept you would ever not wish to meet.


For what it's worth, I completely sympathize.


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## ArabianNights (Jul 23, 2011)

I completely sympathize with this situation.... but I dont get what your doing in Dubai. If you are paying your own travel and hotel costs, why not move to Abu Dhabi? I would have moved there a long time ago, in fact I would have given HR enough fire to make sure that there was enough to get their asses moving, and if that didn't help, threaten to call the authorities. If I was you, I would go directly to the HR manager, give them an ultimatum and deadline - you want A, B, C, D done by xxxx otherwise you are out of there passing by the shiekhs office in the meantime.


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## Kawasutra (May 2, 2011)

ArabianNights said:


> you want A, B, C, D done by xxxx otherwise you are out of there passing by the shiekhs office in the meantime.


...funny...


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## James321 (Nov 6, 2011)

It's a little more complex than that, the company HQ is in Abu Dhabi, the work is currently just outside Dubai by around 20km but will be in Abu D next year.

I think it's almost sorted now, I just needed to speak to the 'right guy', that guy being the big boss! Anyway, hopefully all is well and this was just a slight hiccup with HR's Himalayan sized paperwork mountain.

Watch this space.....

Thanks for the support anyway guys.


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## ArabianNights (Jul 23, 2011)

James321 said:


> It's a little more complex than that, the company HQ is in Abu Dhabi, the work is currently just outside Dubai by around 20km but will be in Abu D next year.
> 
> I think it's almost sorted now, I just needed to speak to the 'right guy', that guy being the big boss! Anyway, hopefully all is well and this was just a slight hiccup with HR's Himalayan sized paperwork mountain.
> 
> ...



Welcome.

Even so, still make sure that you give them enough pressure to make sure that its actually done. In the Middle East, one hour is one day, one day is one week and one month is one year! You have to keep the pressure up, and only cool it until you have all your paperwork and everything in hand. They potentially could be done in for employing people, who do not have the permission to work in the UAE, which is technically illegal.


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## Red_Nosed (Nov 30, 2011)

Never wait for anyone to hand you anything/any info - chase and kick their butts hard for everything. I doubt the first answer I receive when I ask a question then I'd ask the same question a few times to ensure their answer is consistent! If it doesn't happen the way they said it would - you hound them. It's exhausting but it'll get people moving. Welcome to the gulf.

p.s. You'll survive


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