UAE Becomes First Country To Implement 4.5-day Work Week- Know More

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has become the first country in the world to implement four and a half-day working week for government employees. This plan will be implemented from January 1, 2022, as reported by state news agency WAM on December 7.

This plan is in contrast to the global five days working week, with Mondays to Thursdays, the new working period will be from 7:30 am to 3:30 pm, and on Fridays, it's from 7:30 am to 12:30 pm. Before this, UAE abided by the Friday-Saturday off pattern, corresponding with the other countries in the Middle- East, where the Friday sermons and prayers are given utmost importance.

Leading By Example!

With its new strategies, UAE strikes a balance between the Middle-East working pattern and the Western working pattern by providing half-day offs on Friday where the sermons and prayers will be held at 1:15 pm in the country and extending the weekend to Saturdays and Sundays.

The transition is "in line with the UAE's vision to enhance its global competitiveness across economic and business sectors, and to keep pace with global developments", the Abu Dhabi government media office said in a statement, as reported by Al Jazeera.

UAE has become the first country in the world to implement schedules shorter than the global working week, and the new working pattern is initiated to enable the work-life balance of its employees and enhance their well-being and also work towards economic growth of UAE on the global platform, as per the WAM report.

UAE Sets Record

The new working schedules involve working till 12:30 pm on Fridays and the prayers would be held at 1:15 pm across the country. On Fridays, the employees are given the liberty to choose flexible working hours or work from home. Fridays are considered holy for most Islamic countries, and UAE has become the first Gulf nation to shift its weekend offs. But with the balance of flexible working patterns and half-day schedules, the Friday sermons and prayers are to be held without compromise.

Viewing from the economic lens, the weekend alignment with the Western economy is predicted to boost the international trade and market, where on the other day, the long weekend might impact the output of the country. However, specific experts do think the other way round that the long weekends will enhance the work satisfaction for the employees, thereby boosting the economy as a whole.

In the past year, UAE has been indulging in more globally attractive policies and strategies to come on par with the global economy track and at the same time balance with the native Gulf countries practices as well.

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