Expat labour to rise 30%

27/11/2007

The expatriate labour force in the UAE is expected to increase by 30% this year, according to a Labour Ministry official.

Assistant undersecretary Humaid bin Deemas said a monthly increase of 30% was expected to continue until the end of the year, UAE daily Gulf News reported.

The ministry issued 835,000 work permits in 2006, however 900,000 were issued in the first nine months of this year, the newspaper said.

According to ministry statistics the expatriate labour force has increased 10-15% per year since the beginning of the construction boom in 2001.

"This is the first time the labour market has registered such a large increase in its expatriate labour force," Deemas told Gulf News.

by Lynne Roberts on Thursday, 01 November 2007