Abu Dhabi: Nearly 250,000 employees have signed up for the unemployment insurance scheme within 12 days of it coming into effect, local media reported.
This was announced by the Minister of Human Resources and Emiratisation, Abdul Rahman Al-Awar, on Thursday.
The scheme which began on January 1, provides compensation of up to three months for public and private sector employees who have lost their jobs.
The scheme received 60,000 subscribers in the first two days of January, which means that the number has quadrupled in just over ten days.
The unemployment insurance scheme aims to create a low-cost job safety net that supports employees in their career journey, providing them with job stability at no cost to employers.
How does it work?
The compensation will be paid for a maximum period of three months from the date the employee lost the job.
It will be calculated on 60 percent of their basic salary over the most recent six months before the loss of work for a maximum payment of Dirhams 20,000 per month.
There are two categories of workers covered by the insurance program. The first are those whose basic wage is Dirhams 16,000 or less.
The cost is Dirhams 5 per month or Dirhams 60 annually, and the maximum value of the monthly payment is Dirhams 10,000.
The second category is those whose basic salary is more than Dirhams 16,000. The cost is Dirhams 10 per month or Dirhams 120 annually. The maximum monthly compensation amount in this category is Dirhams 20,000.
Employees are entitled to unemployment payments if they have worked and participated in the insurance program for at least 12 months, as long as they were not fired for disciplinary reasons or because they quit.
How to apply for unemployment insurance?
The insurance will be made available through various platforms, information from MoHRE said.
- Insurance Pool’s website and its smart application
- Bank ATMs and Kiosk machines
- Business service centres
- Money exchange companies
- du and Etisalat
- SMS
- Other channels that MOHRE specifies with the service provider (insurance company).
