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Hundreds Of Emiratis Blacklisted For 'Lax 'Attitude Towards Work
November 16, 2009 2:37 p.m. EST
The Media Line Staff
At a certain point, one of the most friendly welfare states on earth has to say 'enough is enough'.
Such was the decision of the United Arab Emirates' National Development Programme (ENDP), a government body tasked with helping Emirati nationals find jobs in a labor force heavily dominated by both skilled and unskilled workers from all over the world.
In an effort to focus on those serious about finding a job, the ENDP has blacklisted 500 Emirati jobseekers seen to either have a relaxed attitude towards work or to not be taking the initiative to find a job.
"The government has tasked us with developing the workforce for Emiratis by helping them to find jobs," Essa Al Mulla, Executive Director of the Emirates Nationals Development Programme told The Media Line. "But to avoid wasting our time and make our work more efficient we need to focus on people who are seriously seeking jobs."
Al Mulla insisted the measure was not a punishment, and would be lifted after six months.
"When we say blacklisted it does not mean we are banning them for life," he maintained. "We are just freezing their names for a few months, after which we will call them again and see if they want to be serious about looking for a job."
"We want to send a clear message," Al Mulla said. "We are trying to help you, but if you are not willing to help yourself, we will take action."
An estimated 16,000 Emirati nationals are currently unemployed in the country. Through recruitment, private sector trainings and counseling, Director Al Mulla said the Emirates Nationals Development Programme has already seen great success in helping nationals find work.
"We are successfully encouraging nationals to join the private sector," he said. "For example, the numbers of nationals seeking jobs in Dubai has dropped dramatically from 7,000 in 2005 to around 2,000 today."
After years of unprecedented growth, the UAE has attracted millions of foreign nationals to work in the country's private sector. That has resulted in the country's nationals making up just a minority of the UAE's residents, with most nationals employed in the public sector.
"The issues here are a combination of lacking skills, false perceptions and a lack of incentives," Tariq A. Haq, a research economist in the International Labour Organization's Employment Analysis and Research Unit, told The Media Line.
"First, there's an incentive issue," he said. "The public sector is more attractive to Emiratis: it has shorter working hours, pays well, and has great benefits. They are trying to redress the imbalance and get more Emiratis into the private sector, but their perception that the incentives to do so are very low has not gone away."
"Second, there's a skills and employability issue," Haq said. "The private sector says 'we have no problem employing Emirati nationals' but they don't have the skills. When you say 'OK so invest in them', the private sector says that's too costly. So perhaps the answer is for the government to invest in training to upgrade skills and to incentivize private sector employment, perhaps by subsidizing it."
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