Salaries Expected to Increase for Emirati Graduates

After announcing the Emirtisation law in the UAE in 2022, companies with more than 50 employees were directed to increase their Emiratisation rate to two per cent by the end of 2022; otherwise, they will have to pay a fine of Dh6,000 per month for every citizen not hired.

UAE national Moza Alblooshi told Khaleej Time that salaries were previously low and the private sector didn’t even hire Emiratis. “Now, things have changed. We’re seeing many job opportunities; we are surprised to see that so many private companies exist,” she said.

"Considering that there are more opportunities in the market, the demand for fresh UAE graduates has increased and therefore, as have salaries. We are seeing candidates who receive multiple offers as well as the challenge of counter-offers, with companies not wanting to lose their UAE national employees,” Samantha Wright, managing consultant for Emiratisation at Michael Page told Khaleej Times.

There are some companies that have to review what can be done internally to achieve their Emiratisation quota and avoid fines because they don’t have the budget to accommodate it.