# Job offer Etihad rail



## Kooster

Hi forum. Newbie poster here desperate for advice & so grateful for those who post on here & share they're knowledge. Just over a week ago I received an unsolicted email from a recruiter at the above company notifying me of a position they where looking to fill. I normally ignore such emails but this one was a little different. Fast forward 10 days & I've been offered a full time permanent job at their facility at Al Mirfa. I'm 44, married with 2 kids aged 10 & 7. This has come totally out of the blue & I'm desperately trying to evaluate an offer of 33600 per month made up of 20k salary, 10k housing allowance, a few grand transport & other allowances & 24k per child per year school fees. 10k relocation reimbursement. There is accommodation for myself only mon - fri at Mirfa but I'd be looking to stay at Abu Dhabi & commute each day. Would this be possible from say Mohammed bin zayed city, what are my options for schools & is this salary enough for a family of 4 to live comfortable & save a few quid in the process. 

Many thanks in advance


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## Stevesolar

Kooster said:


> Hi forum. Newbie poster here desperate for advice & so grateful for those who post on here & share they're knowledge. Just over a week ago I received an unsolicted email from a recruiter at the above company notifying me of a position they where looking to fill. I normally ignore such emails but this one was a little different. Fast forward 10 days & I've been offered a full time permanent job at their facility at Al Mirfa. I'm 44, married with 2 kids aged 10 & 7. This has come totally out of the blue & I'm desperately trying to evaluate an offer of 33600 per month made up of 20k salary, 10k housing allowance, a few grand transport & other allowances & 24k per child per year school fees. 10k relocation reimbursement. There is accommodation for myself only mon - fri at Mirfa but I'd be looking to stay at Abu Dhabi & commute each day. Would this be possible from say Mohammed bin zayed city, what are my options for schools & is this salary enough for a family of 4 to live comfortable & save a few quid in the process.
> 
> Many thanks in advance


Hi,
Just a few questions about the recruitment process.
How were you interviewed for the job?
Did you visit Abu Dhabi for an interview or was it done by video conferencing?
Has the recruiter asked you to pay for any visa processing fees that will be reimbursed to you once you start the job?
My first suspicions are that this is a scam offer - with the prospect of you paying some advance fees that you will never see again.
Cheers
Steve


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## Kooster

Hi Steve
Thanks for taking the time to reply. In answer to your questions I was interviewed over the phone so I can see how it looks here. I work in a very small niche industry within rail plant. The guy I would be replacing was a guy I used to work with 13 years ago & we have a very similar skill set. I’d be replacing him so he could move up the ladder. They 2 guys who interviewed me knew far too much about the industry & knew of the old depot I worked at so it from their time in the uk rail industry, seems they’ve done their homework on me & i’ve possibly come to their attention by way of recommendation. 
They haven’t asked for any upfront fees just asked me to consider the offer. Other people in my industry have had dealings with the recruiter several years ago so I’m as certain as I can be it’s genuine.

Thanks

Mark


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## Stevesolar

Kooster said:


> Hi Steve
> Thanks for taking the time to reply. In answer to your questions I was interviewed over the phone so I can see how it looks here. I work in a very small niche industry within rail plant. The guy I would be replacing was a guy I used to work with 13 years ago & we have a very similar skill set. I’d be replacing him so he could move up the ladder. They 2 guys who interviewed me knew far too much about the industry & knew of the old depot I worked at so it from their time in the uk rail industry, seems they’ve done their homework on me & i’ve possibly come to their attention by way of recommendation.
> They haven’t asked for any upfront fees just asked me to consider the offer. Other people in my industry have had dealings with the recruiter several years ago so I’m as certain as I can be it’s genuine.
> 
> Thanks
> 
> Mark


Hi Mark,
Glad we got that out of the way - there are so many advance fee job scams in the region.
The distance from MBZ to Al Mirza is around 150km and it’s hoghway all the way.
There are serious roadworks on this road until end of 2018 - so some sections have a reduced speed limit - 160 down to 120 km/h.
Don’t underestimate the stress on you and your vehicle of a daily commute of 300km for 5 (or even 6 days) per week.
Cars here are generally serviced every 10,000 or 15,000 km - so your car will see the inside of the garage every few months!
The salary package seems OK but the school fees are a bit low.
Good British curriculum schools will cost 50-90,000 AED per year, per child.
Housing rents have dropped sharply over the past few years - but the introduction of VAT this year and an increase of the municipality fee to 5% recently have increased costs.
Fuel is cheap here but has also risen sharply over the past few years - since it is now adjusted monthly according to world oil prices.
You could be spending around 100 AED per day on petrol - depending on what car you will be using.
Cheers
Steve


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## Kooster

Thanks Steve. I commute Liverpool to Manchester everyday in a company vehicle so I’m used to a commute in the uk. I hadn’t figured on servicing costs. Weighing up the offer it wouldn’t give me the same standard of living I currently enjoy in the uk once I account for saving plan for the kids & pensions but there is always room to haggle eh. The main benefits would therefore have to be lifestyle & schools.
Do you think the lifestyle benefits there would stack up for taking a small hit on the living standards I currently have in the uk ?


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## Stevesolar

Kooster said:


> Thanks Steve. I commute Liverpool to Manchester everyday in a company vehicle so I’m used to a commute in the uk. I hadn’t figured on servicing costs. Weighing up the offer it wouldn’t give me the same standard of living I currently enjoy in the uk once I account for saving plan for the kids & pensions but there is always room to haggle eh. The main benefits would therefore have to be lifestyle & schools.
> Do you think the lifestyle benefits there would stack up for taking a small hit on the living standards I currently have in the uk ?


Hi Mark,
I don’t quite know what you expect in the way of lifestyle benefits.
It has been 46 degrees and high humidity for past few weeks and it will stay like this ( and hotter) until the end of September.
Only indoor activities for the next few months - starts cooling down in October.
It costs money to entertain the kids during the hottest 6 months of the year.
Winters here are very nice!
The schools that cost 50,000 per child here are equivalent to a well run state school (free education) in the UK.
You need to be paying 80,000 plus to get near to a British private school standard.
Booze and western style food is more expensive than the UK.
Indian takeaway food is much cheaper than the UK - but is a totally different menu and range of flavours.
Work hours are generally longer and many companies work a 6 day week.
Far less employment protection here - you can be fired in an instant.
Private healthcare is great here (if you are provided with a good policy by your employer)
Cyber laws and privacy laws are much stronger than the UK. If you insult somebody in person or online, swear at somebody, make rude hand gestures from your car etc, - you can be jailed, heftily fined (£100,000) and deported when you leave jail.
Road rage is therefore far less common here!
We really like it here - but some days you long for a beer in a British pub garden with proper green fields, rain and no dust!
Cheers
Steve


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## Kooster

Cheers Steve. You information has been extremely useful. The attraction would be the low crime rate & people being generally much better behaved than they are at home but as you mention. Plenty of downsides.
Thanks for sharing your knowledge


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## rahman1

Kooster said:


> Hi forum. Newbie poster here desperate for advice & so grateful for those who post on here & share they're knowledge. Just over a week ago I received an unsolicted email from a recruiter at the above company notifying me of a position they where looking to fill. I normally ignore such emails but this one was a little different. Fast forward 10 days & I've been offered a full time permanent job at their facility at Al Mirfa. I'm 44, married with 2 kids aged 10 & 7. This has come totally out of the blue & I'm desperately trying to evaluate an offer of 33600 per month made up of 20k salary, 10k housing allowance, a few grand transport & other allowances & 24k per child per year school fees. 10k relocation reimbursement. There is accommodation for myself only mon - fri at Mirfa but I'd be looking to stay at Abu Dhabi & commute each day. Would this be possible from say Mohammed bin zayed city, what are my options for schools & is this salary enough for a family of 4 to live comfortable & save a few quid in the process.
> 
> Many thanks in advance


hi kooster, May I know the position you offered for.? thanks


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