UAE to spend US$6.5bn to boost private-sector jobsMAJOR EMPLOYER: Many Emiratis pass up private-sector jobs to work in better-paying government positions, with foreigners making up for the shortfallBloombergThe United Arab Emirates (UAE) is to spend 24 billion dirhams (US$6.5 billion) on a package of benefits and subsidies designed to reduce citizen unemployment by making private-sector jobs more attractive. As in much of the Persian Gulf, the UAE government is the employer of choice, with many college graduates rebuffing offers from private companies while they wait for state jobs with better pay, benefits and working hours. Millions of foreigners from all over the world fill most private-sector jobs. The government’s aim is to absorb 75,000 citizens into private-sector jobs over the next five years. Abdulkhaleq Abdulla, a UAE political science professor, said the government should not shoulder the burden alone.

Source: Taipei Times September 13, 2021 15:56 UTC