Employee wins Dhs57,400 in wages and gratuity after 15-year service in Abu Dhabi

The Abu Dhabi Primary Labour Court has ordered a company to pay a former employee a total of Dhs57,400, covering unpaid wages, end-of-service gratuity, and the issuance of an experience certificate.

The court also obligated the company to cover the fees and expenses of the lawsuit. The employee stated that he had worked for the company for more than 15 years, but the company failed to provide him with all his entitlements.

The case began when the employee filed a complaint with the Labour Department at the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation (MoHRE) against his employer. The department later referred the case to the court.

In his lawsuit, the employee demanded payment of unpaid wages for five months amounting to Dhs17,500, leave allowance for eight years totalling Dhs24,500, end-of-service gratuity of Dhs37,800, and overtime pay for six months amounting to Dhs1,500. He also requested that the company be obligated to issue him an experience certificate. The plaintiff stated that he was employed under an indefinite-term contract for more than 15 years, with a monthly salary of Dhs3,500.

According to the case file, the Wage Protection System revealed that the plaintiff was entitled to wages for only four months, totalling Dhs14,000; leave allowance for the last two years, calculated based on his basic monthly salary, amounting to Dhs5,600; and end-of-service gratuity for a period of 15 years, six months, and 26 days, totalling Dhs39,399. However, since the employee requested Dhs37,800 as his end-of-service gratuity, the court awarded him the amount he claimed.

Therefore, the total amount the employee was entitled to was Dhs57,400, which the court ordered the company to pay. The court clarified that regarding the employee’s claim for overtime pay of Dhs1,500, he did not provide any documents proving that he had worked extra hours. Consequently, he was not entitled to overtime pay.