The government of the UAE has always tried its best to ensure that the rights of the people working in the UAE are protected. The introduction of the Wages Protection System (WPS) is a prime example of this. It makes sure that people working within the UAE will get their salaries on-time in accordance with the UAE labour law.
What is WPS?
WPS is a system developed by the central bank of the UAE. It has allowed the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation (MOHRE) to make a database of wage payments in the private sector. The government, through WPS, aims to ensure that the employees are getting their agreed-upon wages without any delay.
How WPS works?
After the development of WPS in 2009, MOHRE has provided every company with a tool to create salary files. These salary files are then sent to their respective banks for the distribution of their employees’ remunerations. It is a necessary step that they have to take if they are using the WPS system. This file contains all the information about the agreed-upon salaries of employees.
This system is easily accessible by the employees from MOHRE’s website, where they can login to see their details. According to the guidelines given by MOHRE, no employee will be paid a salary with a difference of more than one month. Similarly, whenever an employee joins or leaves the company, it is required to update its employee list on the website.
The Processing of Payments
The procedure of salary payment with the WPS is quite simple and consists of the following steps.
- The company has to open an account with an approved bank or agent if it doesn’t already have one in the UAE.
- It has to sign a WPS agreement with the bank or the agent.
- Then, it needs to give out salary transfer instructions to the bank or the agent, whomever they’re dealing with.
- The company’s representative bank or agent notifies WPS that it has sent workers’ details as well as wages to the designated UAE Central Bank.
- The Central Bank of UAE forwards these details to MOHRE to ensure that each employee is getting their rightful pay.
- The WPS authorises the bank or agent whoever is representing the employer to make the payment.
- Lastly, after getting a green signal from the WPS, the bank or the agent of the employer transfers the salaries to the employees’ accounts.
Withdrawing Salaries
The employees can easily withdraw their salaries once they are transferred to their accounts. They can use either of the below-mentioned methods for doing so.
ATM Cards
For employees that already have a bank account, the process of withdrawing salary is quite easy. Simply, they have to use their ATM card and withdraw the amount they desire. General banking rules apply here.
If they’ve enabled SMS or email alerts, they’ll also get a message from the bank telling them they have received the salary.
WPS Card
Those employees who do not have a bank account can make use of the WPS cards that their companies can provide for them. The companies can tie-up with different money exchanges in the UAE that can provide cost-effective WPS compliant payroll solutions.
These exchanges allow employers to transfer salaries directly to the employee’s exchange account. They also provide WPS cards to employees’ using which they can easily withdraw their salaries. They can take-out their salaries at any of the exchange’s branches or from the government installed WPS machines.
What to Do If You’re Not Getting Pay on Time?
As per the UAE’s Labour Law, if an employer doesn’t pay an employee their remuneration within the first 10 days from the due date of the salary it’s considered a late payment. Article 120 UAE labour law clearly states that getting pay on time is one of the basic rights that an employee is entitled to.
However, in case an employer fails to follow this basic rule, they’ve to face serious repercussions. According to Ministerial Resolution No. 15 of 2017, they’ll have to pay heavy fines as well as they can face actions stating fraudulent use of WPS.
