# working days & hours



## SPC (May 7, 2010)

Few questions

How many working days are there in UAE and what are the working hours.

Is it true that there is a 2 hour mandatory break and work again after 5 till seven.

This third question may vary person to person. The question is , how much energy is left to work out after working long hours, hot weather and a bad traffic jam.
I get fatigue here after working in a pretty good weather conditions and barely manage my gym schedule. What is it like over there?


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## pamela0810 (Apr 5, 2010)

SPC said:


> Few questions
> 
> How many working days are there in UAE and what are the working hours.
> 
> ...


Hello SPC,
A typical work day in the corporate environment is approximately 9 hours with a one hour lunch break in between. So that would be either 8-5 or 9-6. The mandatory 2 hour break is for the labourers and it is actually a 4 hour break during summer due to temperatures rising to 50 degrees around mid-day. Additionally, travel agencies are usually closed between 1 to 4pm but think that has changed to a full work day too.
As for your question regarding energy levels after work, it all depends on how you cope really and how stressful your job is. A lot of people head straight to the gym after work and lead very active lives. So, depending on how much of a work load you have and how dedicated you are to your fitness routine, you should be able to manage to squeeze it in.
A work week is usually 5 days from Sunday to Thursday, although some companies do have 6 day work weeks too.
Traffic jams are not that much of an issue as it really depends on where you live and how far away you from your work place.
Welcome to Dubai!


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## Elphaba (Jan 24, 2008)

SPC said:


> Few questions
> 
> How many working days are there in UAE and what are the working hours.
> 
> ...


UAE Labour Law is quite specific regarding working hours. There is a maximum of 48 hours per week, unless you work in hospitality (then max 9 hrs per day) or are of managerial status. You may not work for mor than five hours without a break,

As most people are in an airconditioned environment, the heat is not a major factor in the working day. You just have to be sensible if outside during the summer months and take on extra fluids.

-


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## Maz25 (Jul 6, 2008)

I think that it is easier to exercise in the morning. The boost to your energy level sets you up niceliy for the day. 

I work quite long hours and rarely get home before 7pm. To say the least, at that time of the night, the gym is the last thing on my mind and I also do not have any energy left either. I've tried going to the gym at that time and I am left feeling utterly exhausted afterwards. The motivation is also not there as I am by that time thinking about dinner (which is not even cooked yet) and the amount of time available for my food to digest before I go to bed. Result for me was that if I spent any hour in the gym, I then didn't eat cause my hunger had died by then and I had no energy to slave over the hob for another hour and I woke up super hungry the next day - ended up eating anything and everything in sight and thus putting back on the few pounds that had managed to lose! 

If I really must exercise, I do it at the weekend! At least then, I feel fresh and have no excuse to skip the gym.


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## Helios (Oct 22, 2008)

Elphaba said:


> UAE Labour Law is quite specific regarding working hours. There is a maximum of 48 hours per week, unless you work in hospitality (then max 9 hrs per day)
> 
> -


And a maximum of 6 days a week. I don't know if this law applies also to FZ companies ?


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## Saffiechic83 (May 6, 2010)

I work in a hotel in back office support and I work 10 hours per day with half an hour lunch break (honestly, after 2 years of that I still have not gotten used to it).
I gym in the morning cos waiting till after work just doesn't work for me...I have no energy for physical activity in the evening (although I do play try and fit in tennis three times per week in the evening).


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## SPC (May 7, 2010)

Thank you very much all of you for replying my thread. Are the working hours any different in Free Zone. I have been looking into the map of Dubai and still confused about Free Zone concept. I am told that even the visa for free zone is more liberal regarding switching jobs and the bans implemented by the emlpoyers are not a big issue in FZ.
Life does sound very hectic and tiring but is it really a good trade off. I mean our ultimate goal is to save some money which apparently we dont in out countries after paying a huge taxes. Cant understand how many more taxes will be there especially after the HST tax been intrduced in Canada.

Do majority of companies have 2 days off or is it any particular sector.

Thnak you once again for taking some time replying my post.


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## w_man (Apr 16, 2010)

SPC said:


> I mean our ultimate goal is to save some money which apparently we dont in out countries after paying a huge taxes. Cant understand how many more taxes will be there especially after the HST tax been intrduced in Canada.


Haha - I hear ya bud. I'm looking forward to a few years of not paying taxes here. It hurts every time I see that pay cheque. HST :der:


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## rsinner (Feb 3, 2009)

SPC said:


> Thank you very much all of you for replying my thread. Are the working hours any different in Free Zone. I have been looking into the map of Dubai and still confused about Free Zone concept. I am told that even the visa for free zone is more liberal regarding switching jobs and the bans implemented by the emlpoyers are not a big issue in FZ.
> Life does sound very hectic and tiring but is it really a good trade off. I mean our ultimate goal is to save some money which apparently we dont in out countries after paying a huge taxes. Cant understand how many more taxes will be there especially after the HST tax been intrduced in Canada.
> 
> Do majority of companies have 2 days off or is it any particular sector.
> ...


Free zones are special economic zones where the normal corporate laws of UAE do not apply - Jebel Ali Free Zone, Dubai Airport Free Zone, Media City, Healthcare City, etc etc are some of the free zones here and spread all over Dubai (no, they do not have borders between the free zones and "normal" dubai)
A number of companies esp. larger multinationals have two days off, but then a no. of companies have 1 day off as well - depends on your company
Also, working hours vary from company to company and the sector you work in. Of course if the employee works as a labourer for example, he will have some legally designated working hours. But if you have a manager kind of role etc you would have working hours which might be flexible or might go beyond normal office times. Surely it is the same in Canada as well.


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