# Cancellation of contract



## pygoh (Aug 9, 2008)

Hi all,

I've just got an email saying my employment has been cancelled due to the global financial situation. My shipment has already arrived in dubai and is sitting in a warehouse at the port.

I signed the contract a few months ago and was a few days away from emailing them my passport scans to proceed visa application when I received the news.

Both my wife and I quit our jobs and have rented out our house.

Has anyone been through a similar situation, and if so, what can we do to try to recoup some of the costs.

Thanks in advance.


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## greatexpectations (Aug 5, 2008)

gosh - how awful for you...I'm very sorry.

What provision does your contract make re. repatriation.

What notice period are you on?

Who is the employer? Local or multinational?

Which country are you based in?


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## dizzyizzy (Mar 30, 2008)

It infuriates me that a company thinks they can just do that to someone with no consequences. How irresponsible of them. This sucks Pygoh, I am really sorry to hear about your situation. 

I have no advice to give you unfortunately, because I am very new here, but I am sure other more knowledgeable members of the forum can be of a little more help than me. 

Is this company in any of the free zones?


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## Maz25 (Jul 6, 2008)

That totally sucks! As much as I would like to say sue them or something, with the way that things are done here, you will in all probability end up even more out of pocket by trying to pursue the matter. If your employer is quite amenable, maybe you could negotatiate with them to bear the cost of shipping your belongings back to port of origin.

Was it a freezone company? In the freezone, the contract is not actually valid until the company registers it with the freezone authority (unlikely if they had not applied for the visa!), so there again, you would have little recourse. I simply signed a letter of acceptance and signed the actual contract only when I got here! I'm not sure about other areas.

The best thing to do is just pick yourself up and try to move on! It's unfortunate that this had to happen, especially with times being quite hard but hopefully something better will come along soon!


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## flossie (Jun 9, 2008)

That sucks. I am so sorry for your predicament. Were the company responsible for shipping your stuff over? If so, they might be willing to ship it back?


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## pygoh (Aug 9, 2008)

Thanks everyone.

I spoke to one of the Senior Associates at the practice (it's an international architectural practice), and he said the office just lost several huge projects and had no choice. And it's highly unlikely I'd be able to recoup any of the costs.

Oh well...siht happens. Time to look forward and ship our stuff back to Australia at our own cost. It's already incurred over US$1000 in storage cost.

Oh, the company is not in free zone.


Cheers


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## DesertStranded (Oct 9, 2008)

Well, you could look for another job here but to be honest, Dubai isn't exactly what it's made out to be.


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## linfie (Nov 14, 2008)

Far out I was about to move to Abu Dhabi sometimes in January but after hearing your story we might have to think twice about the offer. 
Wouldn't want to be in your shoes, wouldn't want anyone to be in your shoes now, sorry mate.


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## Maz25 (Jul 6, 2008)

linfie said:


> Far out I was about to move to Abu Dhabi sometimes in January but after hearing your story we might have to think twice about the offer.
> Wouldn't want to be in your shoes, wouldn't want anyone to be in your shoes now, sorry mate.


Do let someone else's bad experience put you off. There is a global recession on the horizon and despite the amount of money here, Dubai has not been spared. It will not suffer as badly as the US & Europe but a lot of companies here are feeling the pain brought on by the current economic situation. Companies here are still actively recruiting, albeit they are taking on less people than they would have done a few months ago.

There are a few things you can do to protect yourself:

Do not ship your belongings before you have your visa - you do not want to pay storage cost to begin with and since most companies put you up in temporary accommodation, you have time to wait for your furniture to arrive!

Never resign from your job until you know your visa has been applied for! I resigned the day I got told that the company had applied for my visa! With the amount of time it takes to get the visa, you still have time to work your notice period!

Do as much research as you can about both the company and the industry that you will be moving into! As an example, if you are going to be working in real estate, a lot of contracts are getting cancelled at the mo due to the downturn in the market! Same thing applies to construction!

The last one is luck!!! Unfortunately, when we make the decision to move here or anywhere else for the matter, we all accept that this is a gamble! It could work out but then again it could all go pearshape before you move here or after you arrive here!

It's really unfortunate that this has happened to pygoh but if you still want to move here, just do your research and use his experience to guide you rather than allow it to hinder you! Pygoh seems to be picking himself up and that's really the best attitude to have!


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## greatexpectations (Aug 5, 2008)

pygoh said:


> Thanks everyone.
> 
> I spoke to one of the Senior Associates at the practice (it's an international architectural practice), and he said the office just lost several huge projects and had no choice. And it's highly unlikely I'd be able to recoup any of the costs.
> 
> ...


Quite honestly - since they are a multinational, i would escalate the issue within their HR (and if necessary general management) teams until you get some compensation from them such that you are at least not out of pocket.

NB - I would not advocate a legal action, but a strong plea to their better side and morals (and perhaps a very subtle reference to media interest in this story and their treatment of you).

Also, don't give up on Dubai. Trust me - there's still heaps of construction going on...impossible to avoid it here in fact! In any number of "luxury" locations you could choose to live within walking distance of your project site!


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## linfie (Nov 14, 2008)

Thanks for the advice. I suppose they make a lot of sense in this economic climate. I know it's a gamble but it's one that we don't want to lose, really. Will do a bit more research and networking to check out the situation within the company first.

Cheers.



Maz25 said:


> Do let someone else's bad experience put you off. There is a global recession on the horizon and despite the amount of money here, Dubai has not been spared. It will not suffer as badly as the US & Europe but a lot of companies here are feeling the pain brought on by the current economic situation. Companies here are still actively recruiting, albeit they are taking on less people than they would have done a few months ago.
> 
> There are a few things you can do to protect yourself:
> 
> ...


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