Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai. Photo: Hamdan.ae
In a government first, Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai, has approved new rules which allow government employees in Dubai to work from home. The move has been welcomed as a positive step forward, especially for women seeking to balance careers with family life.
With the pandemic evolving the very nature of our work culture and traditional work habits had adapted. So, it comes as no surprise that the government has decided to recalibrate the way we work.
“Remote work is one of the solutions that proved successful in maintaining the sustainability of business during the COVID-19 pandemic,” explained Sheikh Hamdan. “It is a flexible system that enables an employee to discharge his tasks and helps him be more creative.” His Highness added that the Dubai government constantly looks to the future, seeking to find dynamic solutions, through investing in workforce development to continually improve government performance.
“We are working to enhance the leadership of the government work system in Dubai,” he added. “Our government embraces the future and constantly strives to find proactive solutions to challenges. We have the potential to strengthen our preparedness and harness the tools that support our forward approaches and focus on making the best use of opportunities.”
.@HamdanMohammed approves new remote work protocols for #Dubai Government employees. As part of the new Protocols, employees can perform their duties from outside their offices, using remote working technologies https://t.co/9hYGCnY4WI pic.twitter.com/3I9yjCpQEn
— Dubai Media Office (@DXBMediaOffice) December 10, 2020
The new work from home system will enable a company’s workforce to be flexible and perform their duties from literally anywhere in the world. By offering employees more flexibility they can achieve a stronger work/life balance, which is particularly useful for those juggling work with parenting.
Abdullah Ali Zayed Al Falasi, Director General of Dubai Government’s Human Resources Department, said, “We are keen to implement Sheikh Mohammed’s vision for enhancing the government efficiency by investing in human resources and developing their capabilities to uplift the government’s performance and be well-prepared for future jobs.”
Under the new rule, remote employees should take into account the security and confidentiality of company information. Also, the employee’s performance and productivity should be monitored.
While it’s not been made clear whether the new work from home rules will eventually roll out to all public and private companies, it’s certainly a step in the right direction.
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