Oman recently announced some major changes to its labour laws. Providing clarity on the leave system and payment, the Labour Law Degree was issued by Sultan Haitham Bin Tarik. With this new development, citizens and employees have been granted loads of new and extended paid leaves. Here’s all you need to know about the massive changes that have been introduced in the labour law of Oman!
Oman Makes Changes To Labour Law!
According to a report by Khaleej Times, it was revealed that some major reforms has been made under the Royal Decree No. 53 of 2023. For those who aren’t aware, this includes leaves for parents, caregivers, and those who are sick. Moreover, part-time work is also now allowed for employees. With this decision, the aim is to reduce recruitment costs and ease business operations.
As it happens, there are also some reforms made regarding formation and appraisals wherein if an employee fails to meet their performance and productivity goals, the employer is in the right to terminate the contract. As a result, the worker shall be informed about their inefficiency and will be given no less than six months to address these issues. Moreover, a process of Omanisation is expected to be facilitated, wherein an expat employee can be terminated if an Omqni employee is employed to replace them.
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What About The Leaves?
In case you’re wondering about the extended leaves available for both citizens and for expatriates, here are some of the highlights that you might want to know.
- Working mothers will now get 98-day maternity leave, which also covers the period before and after a child’s birth. Moreover, they can avail up to one year of unpaid leave for child care, and once they are back to work, they are entitled to an hour for child care every day!
- Fathers can also file for paternity leave, which is for seven days.
- If you are a caregiver, then you can avail a 15-day leave for taking care of a sick family member.
- Employees are now entitled to 182-day sick leave. However, there are certain conditions for this. A full payment will be given from the first day till the 21st after this 75% of the salary will be given from the 22nd to 35th day, then it will be 50% from the 36th to 70th day, and finally, 35% will be given from the 71st to 182nd day.
- Workers can now be granted special leaves, these will be unpaid.
- A female Muslim work is eligible for 130-day leave if her husband dies, the same for non-muslim women workers is 14 days.
- A study leave of 15 days is available for employees who’re enrolled in schools, universities, or institutes!
Are you also someone who is working in Oman? What are your thoughts on the new labour law reforms?
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