Six-hour work rule not binding: QCCI
Web posted at: 8/21/2009 7:11:33
Source ::: THE PENINSULA/ By Joyce C AbaÑo and ABDULLA ABDULRAHMAN
DOHA: With Ramadan just a day away, the Qatar Chamber of Commerce and Industry (QCCI), the representative body of the private sector, has said it is not mandatory for companies covered by the labour law to reduce daily working hours to six during the holy month.
But the Ministry of Labour emphatically maintains that working hours in private establishments must be reduced to six during the fasting month and the rule is applicable to both Muslim and non-Muslim employees.
According to the QCCI, the daily working hours are decided by the job contract an employee has signed with a private company.
“People need to work strictly in accordance with the agreement they have signed with their employer. If the contract mentions that one has to work for six hours during Ramadan, one should work for that duration,” said Abdul Aziz Al Emadi, Vice-Chairman of QCCI.
“Whether it is Ramadan or not, a private sector employee needs to put in as many hours of work daily as specified in the job contract,” Al Emadi reiterated.
But a senior official of the Ministry of Labour, Abdullah Al Mohannadi, told this newspaper in response to a question that as per Qatar’s labour law a private sector employee should work for only six hours during the fasting month.
Refusing to answer further questions on whether the six-hour rule was applicable to both Muslim and non-Muslim private sector employees and if the labour department conducted raids on firms to ensure compliance with the six-hour rule, he reiterated: “Even if your contract specifies that your working hours are eight or 10 a day, during Ramadan you can just work for six hours and leave.”
And there is no need for one’s job contract to specify that daily working hours during Ramadan will be six, he added.
But Al Emadi insisted that private entities go strictly by the terms and conditions regarding working hours specified in their employees’ job agreements.
Meanwhile, a large multinational company that is new to Qatar said it was applying the six-hour working rule during Ramadan with respect to all its employees.
“As it is, we have flexible working hours for our employees… Since we have operations in many Muslim countries we are aware of the work schedule during Ramadan,” the company’s CEO said.
Please pay attention to the words from the Labour Department within this article. Do not read only the title, as it's misleading.
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Six-hour work rule not binding: QCCI
Web posted at: 8/21/2009 7:11:33
Source ::: THE PENINSULA/ By Joyce C AbaÑo and ABDULLA ABDULRAHMAN
DOHA: With Ramadan just a day away, the Qatar Chamber of Commerce and Industry (QCCI), the representative body of the private sector, has said it is not mandatory for companies covered by the labour law to reduce daily working hours to six during the holy month.
But the Ministry of Labour emphatically maintains that working hours in private establishments must be reduced to six during the fasting month and the rule is applicable to both Muslim and non-Muslim employees.
According to the QCCI, the daily working hours are decided by the job contract an employee has signed with a private company.
“People need to work strictly in accordance with the agreement they have signed with their employer. If the contract mentions that one has to work for six hours during Ramadan, one should work for that duration,” said Abdul Aziz Al Emadi, Vice-Chairman of QCCI.
“Whether it is Ramadan or not, a private sector employee needs to put in as many hours of work daily as specified in the job contract,” Al Emadi reiterated.
But a senior official of the Ministry of Labour, Abdullah Al Mohannadi, told this newspaper in response to a question that as per Qatar’s labour law a private sector employee should work for only six hours during the fasting month.
Refusing to answer further questions on whether the six-hour rule was applicable to both Muslim and non-Muslim private sector employees and if the labour department conducted raids on firms to ensure compliance with the six-hour rule, he reiterated: “Even if your contract specifies that your working hours are eight or 10 a day, during Ramadan you can just work for six hours and leave.”
And there is no need for one’s job contract to specify that daily working hours during Ramadan will be six, he added.
But Al Emadi insisted that private entities go strictly by the terms and conditions regarding working hours specified in their employees’ job agreements.
Meanwhile, a large multinational company that is new to Qatar said it was applying the six-hour working rule during Ramadan with respect to all its employees.
“As it is, we have flexible working hours for our employees… Since we have operations in many Muslim countries we are aware of the work schedule during Ramadan,” the company’s CEO said.