Finding work in Dubai, UAE.

K ninja

Whats the best way to get a job Dubai? In the past three weeks I have applied for about 40 jobs but haven't yet received a response just emails confirming my application.

Is it better to go out there get accommodation and start looking or better to find one online first?

Thanks

Tom Dunne

K ninja wrote: »

Is it better to go out there get accommodation and start looking

In short, yes.

You will find that face-to-face interaction is valued significantly more than an anonymous submission on a website.

K ninja

Tom Dunne wrote: »

In short, yes.

You will find that face-to-face interaction is valued significantly more than an anonymous submission on a website.

Thanks Tom. I was having a look at the visa situation if i decided to do this and some websites advised against it because you would find yourself in a position without a work visa which would mean searching for jobs on a tourist one.

Would employers be willing to sponsor you there aswel if that was the case?

speedboatchase

K ninja wrote: »

Whats the best way to get a job Dubai? In the past three weeks I have applied for about 40 jobs but haven't yet received a response just emails confirming my application.

Is it better to go out there get accommodation and start looking or better to find one online first?

Thanks

Accommodation can be quite expensive in the Gulf so I think you should definitely look online first. When I moved to Doha, my initial interviews were all done over Skype and after I accepted the role my employer paid for my flight over and for a month's rent when I got settled in. That's not unusual either.

What kind of job are you looking for?

K ninja

speedboatchase wrote: »

Accommodation can be quite expensive in the Gulf so I think you should definitely look online first. When I moved to Doha, my initial interviews were all done over Skype and after I accepted the role my employer paid for my flight over and for a month's rent when I got settled in. That's not unusual either.

What kind of job are you looking for?

Finance

speedboatchase

K ninja wrote: »

Finance

Well definitely stay where you are for now. Whatever employer you end up with will happily pay for your flight, accommodation (at least initially, I'd expect), and get to work on sorting out your visa once you arrive. It's par for the course in the Gulf to conduct Skype interviews with hires from the West rather than face-to-face. Also, rent is expensive out here (mine is over €1000 per month) so taking a flight and waiting around will just burn a hole in your pocket.

As for the role you're looking for, my advice would be to use the advanced job search within LinkedIn and select 'UAE', then make a few different searches with whichever relevant keywords until you find what's available. Don't rule out Abu Dhabi either; very nice close by and similarly built up.

Suckler

http://www.irishbusinessnetwork.me/ - try going through this group; very active and well connected members.

There is a similiar group in Abu dhabi - The Irish business Council

Both cities have Irish societies also that would be useful to make contact with.

wuffly

If you are thinking of moving out without a job you will need a serious whack of savings, short term accom is expensive and its high season at the moment (as its not crazy hot) You cant take a lease on an apartment without a residents visa, but you can rent a car, you just need to show your visit visa stamp. Do you have friends living there that might be able to put you up for a bit?

As someone that moved out on spec (3yrs ago) it can be very hard i interviewed for my current role the week I arrived and between getting offered the job and starting it took three months. My other half took almost 8 months to get a proper job with a visa. In all honestly we are doing well now but those first few months were hard going and not knowing how it will go will can be hard on you mentally. Things can move very slowly, just be prepared. If you are coming make sure its well before ramadan as anyone with hiring power will be most likely be on leave then (july this year)

Don't pay fees to any recruitment agent its illegal.
Unfortunately they work for companies not people so unless you are suitable for a role they have, they wont really respond. Lack of GCC experience can be a factor but international experience can negate this somewhat.

Companies will generally only hire western expats for more senior roles. Banks have quiet high requirements for hiring locals due to current government policy but for other companies it is not as high so might be best to look in other areas.

Good luck!

FURET

Tom Dunne wrote: »

In short, yes.

You will find that face-to-face interaction is valued significantly more than an anonymous submission on a website.

I strongly disagree with this. Dubai isn't a place where someone should just move to on the off-chance that they might land a decent job. I don't even think it's possible to rent a *nice* place unless you have a employment visa. Note also that rents are usually payable in 4, 2, or 1 cheque, so you need to have a UAE chequebook and you can't get one of those unless you're a resident. Of course, you could probably house-share, but I wouldn't recommend it at all.

For the UAE in general, if a company wants to hire you from the west, they'll conduct video interviews with you. If they hire you, they'll fly you here, give you a housing allowance up-front, and put you up in a hotel for a few weeks while you try to find a place to live.

You should not accept any job that doesn't offer the following allowances:

• Transport
• Housing
• Annual Flight Tickets to home country for you and your dependents
• Education Allowance for your kids
• Medical insurance for you and your dependents

If you're single, obviously the education allowance probably isn't important. But many people move to Dubai with the intention of staying for 2 or 3 years and end up married.

The minimum housing allowance you should accept is 90,000 AED per year (about 18k euro).

wuffly

FURET wrote: »

I strongly disagree with this. Dubai isn't a place where someone should just move to on the off-chance that they might land a decent job. I don't even think it's possible to rent a *nice* place unless you have a employment visa. Note also that rents are usually payable in 4, 2, or 1 cheque, so you need to have a UAE chequebook and you can't get one of those unless you're a resident. Of course, you could probably house-share, but I wouldn't recommend it at all.

For the UAE in general, if a company wants to hire you from the west, they'll conduct video interviews with you. If they hire you, they'll fly you here, give you a housing allowance up-front, and put you up in a hotel for a few weeks while you try to find a place to live.

You should not accept any job that doesn't offer the following allowances:

• Transport
• Housing
• Annual Flight Tickets to home country for you and your dependents
• Education Allowance for your kids
• Medical insurance for you and your dependents

If you're single, obviously the education allowance probably isn't important. But many people move to Dubai with the intention of staying for 2 or 3 years and end up married.

The minimum housing allowance you should accept is 90,000 AED per year (about 18k euro).

Just to add to this, while allowances are all well and good, make sure to get a big basic as this is what your end of service benefit is generally based on. There are little or no pensions here so this is the lump sum you are working for. Must companies offer total packages now and just break it down into the above. 90kaed will get you a one bed in an ok area and maybe a 2 bed further out, but prices are rocketing up at the moment. if you manage to get a housing allowance paid directly by the company on top of your salary you are on a winner.

Be careful what you agree to on holidays, the labour law is 30 calenders days which means your weekends are counted when you take time off as in a long weekend with 2 work days off is 4days out of your holiday allowance. Not all companies do this but its something to be aware of.

I def agree with trying to get hired from home, it will take longer but will be worth it in the long run, they will pay towards your move out and if you are still with them when you move home they will pay towards your moving home also.

B25

Anyone know of any agricultural work going in Dubai for Summer 2014. Im a 3rd year Ag Sc student and would love the chance of getting experience in Dubai. I am really interested in anything to do with Dairy especially maybe in a Dairy Processing Plant.

ratzy

Hi don't mean to hijack the thread but i was just wondering if anybody could give me some feed back on wages in Dubai i am a hotel management student and i am hoping to go out to Dubai or Abu Dhabi for a 6month work placement all feed back would be greatly appreciated.

seachto7

Have a read of this. Food for thought.

http://www.independent.co.uk/voices/commentators/johann-hari/the-dark-side-of-dubai-1664368.html

wuffly

ratzy wrote: »

Hi don't mean to hijack the thread but i was just wondering if anybody could give me some feed back on wages in Dubai i am a hotel management student and i am hoping to go out to Dubai or Abu Dhabi for a 6month work placement all feed back would be greatly appreciated.

I doubt you would get taken on for a work placement as they would have to pay for a full visa for you. (You have to have a residence visa to work) I haven't clue about wages but The Jumeirah Hotel group have a lot of irish people at management level, so they might be worth a go

wuffly

B25 wrote: »

Anyone know of any agricultural work going in Dubai for Summer 2014. Im a 3rd year Ag Sc student and would love the chance of getting experience in Dubai. I am really interested in anything to do with Dairy especially maybe in a Dairy Processing Plant.

Some Irish working in Al Ain Dairy, Almarai is the other main supplier also some Irish but Saudi based. I doubt you would get summer work for visa reasons see my other post. Still worth looking into though. Get in touch with Bord Bia, Gulf food fair will be on in two weeks.

FURET

seachto7 wrote: »

Have a read of this. Food for thought.

http://www.independent.co.uk/voices/commentators/johann-hari/the-dark-side-of-dubai-1664368.html

Dubai is not as equality-minded as the west, to put it mildly. But the author of that piece has since been discredited and suspended by his employer, and awards he was given were withdrawn, for falsifying the stuff he puts in his articles.

B25

Thanks for that Wuffly. Will give it a go a see how I get on.

seachto7

FURET wrote: »

Dubai is not as equality-minded as the west, to put it mildly. But the author of that piece has since been discredited and suspended by his employer, and awards he was given were withdrawn, for falsifying the stuff he puts in his articles.

How much of the article is false though, that's what I'd like to know.

FURET

seachto7 wrote: »

How much of the article is false though, that's what I'd like to know.

Parts of it ring true but much of it really does not. Many construction workers are badly treated by the companies they work for - though not all are. Maids are also often treated badly, reputedly most often by Arab bosses. But it's not institutional. It's not accepted. It goes on behind closed doors. Also, a lot of the misery experienced by some Indian workers is at the hands of their fellow Indians (the caste system may be a factor).

One problem is that Dubai is on the doorsteps of India, Bangladesh, and Pakistan - countries with enormous populations and egregious poverty levels. Many come to Dubai and have no skills, or at least no skills that are rare. They're paid very low wages as a result. The governments of some countries like the Philippines have successfully lobbied the UAE government to impose minimum standards of employment for their nationals.

The situation is improving and the Emiratis in general are a very progressive people. You have to remember that 40 years ago, the country was an illiterate wasteland. But now, to quote wikipedia:

In 2013, the Norway-based Global Network for Rights and Development (GNRD) released its annual International Human Rights Indicator (IHRRI) report that ranks the United Arab Emirates first among Arab countries and 14th globally for respecting human rights. The next Arab country on the list, Tunisia, was ranked at 72. The UAE was also ranked six spots ahead of the United States which was placed 20th overall. To acquire its 14th position, the UAE fared well across 21 individual categories, performing best in the education category with a 94 per cent finish for ensuring top education for all children.

The above statement surprised me quite a bit but not as much as one might expect on an initial reading. I don't know how reliable the results are. After investigating who the Global Network for Rights and Development are, I'm inclined to skepticism.

I am often shocked by the low levels of pay and some of the employment restrictions and rights of the underclass here. I am unashamedly looking through privileged western eyes. One of the things I've learned here is how atypical the western perspective on things is. My wife is Filipino and is far less shocked than I am about things like low pay. In her country, many people get by on less 100 euro per month and live in shacks (while others are perfectly middle class and can afford whatever a westerner can). Such poor people get to earn much more than that in Dubai, but it's still pathetic in my opinion. The problem is that there are hundreds of thousands of low-skilled workers here and economically speaking, they're just not valuable. Also, in many non-western countries, huge inequality simply does not shock people like it does in the west. And you have to remember that almost everyone in Dubai is non-western.

All of the western expats I know are decent to the low-paid workers we encounter (security guards, building maintenance, waiters, shop assistants) and tend to tip very generously. There is almost never an opportunity to interact directly with the construction workers.

I did meet one fellow once near where I live and he politely asked if I had any panadol. He was working in the heat so I nipped to the grocery and got him a packet of painkillers, a bottle of water, an ice-cream, and a kit-kat. A friend of mine made friends with the Nepali security guard in my building and helped him buy a laptop for his daughter back home. He also set up an email address for him and helped him apply for jobs online. It's also common for office professionals to do a monthly collection for the office cleaners etc by passing an envelope around.

Whenever I do see openly dickish behavior towards the underclass, I'm sorry to say it, but it comes from rich Asians or Arabs lording it over their staff.

seachto7

I had thought about looking for a job in Dubai when college was done, simply for the reason that I could earn a bit more money, so could start saving some cash. Maybe stick it out for a year or so. Other than that, the thoughts of going there don't appeal to me.
I often get the impression it's just a bling bling place. "We don't have 5 star hotels! We have 6 star hotels!!". I'm not interested in bigger, better, richer, fastest, most luxurious, money money money etc etc.

But I contradict myself saying I'd go there just to save some cash.

wuffly

seachto7 wrote: »

I had thought about looking for a job in Dubai when college was done, simply for the reason that I could earn a bit more money, so could start saving some cash. Maybe stick it out for a year or so. Other than that, the thoughts of going there don't appeal to me.
I often get the impression it's just a bling bling place. "We don't have 5 star hotels! We have 6 star hotels!!". I'm not interested in bigger, better, richer, fastest, most luxurious, money money money etc etc.

But I contradict myself saying I'd go there just to save some cash.

Like anywhere Dubai is what you make it, its not all bling bling 7star hotels. The salaries are tax free but you work hard for them, i dont know anyone that doesn't work over time or is constantly on call via a blackberry, except for teachers. The work ethic and expectation is very different here. There are tons of out door activities in the winter, water sports, dune bashing, hiking, running, etc... Plus the middle east and far east are on your door step if you want to travel. There is plenty of culture here if you choose to look for it, Dubai might have sprung up over night but people were living here for a long time before they discovered oil. It would be hard to save money in a year, getting set up takes time and money. And to be honest companies aren't looking for graduate expats they want people with experience for senior roles. Unless you are a teacher.

sawdoubters

what job are you looking for

FURET

There's plenty of bling in Dubai but as wuffly says, you don't have to drink it up. It melts into the background for me. I enjoy the beach and eating out - those are my two main activities in Dubai.

I'd agree that the initial year is costly. It all depends on your circumstance. I work in IT and wanted to settle here for several years, so I got my own apartment, furnished it, and bought a new car outright. I also got married in Ireland (very small wedding, no bling!), then 30 days later we had to go to the Philippines because my wife's dad died suddenly. So it was a fairly expensive year. I still managed to clear a college debt of 7k euro and save around 10k euro, while being debt free. Still, that figure was under target by a long shot.

This year, now that that's all behind me, we'll be able to save around 40k euro from my salary plus a bit more from my wife's. The key is to live fairly modestly. A lot of expats act like kids in sweetshops. They splurge on rental apartments close to the beach (paying twice what they really need to), they go waaay overboard and buy luxury or sports cars, travel abroad every second weekend, and do loads of bungee and parachute jumps. A lot of them then have large credit card bills and grumble about not being able to save. I mean if you're going to Dubai explicitly to live like that, fine. But if, like most expats, you go there to save, then a bit of maturity is required.

My wife and I don't have kids and live very comfortably on around 600 euro per month each after bills and rent etc - and we save most of the rest (though we do two big holidays each year).

I'd also tend to agree with wuffly that if you're a fresh graduate it's very hard to get a job here unless your game is teaching. I am trying to encourage my 22-year-old brother to come over for two years after he graduates so that he can earn a bit of money and see some of the world. I calculate he could save around 20k euro in two years if he played his cards right.

For other roles, I agree it's best to be senior. I was unbelievably lucky and was recruited from Ireland with only 15 months' experience.

seachto7

sawdoubters wrote: »

what job are you looking for

I will (hopefully) have a journalism masters in the summer, but I have been working in online markering for the last 6+ years, so hopefully can combine the 2. I also worked as a technical writer for a while, and ironically a TEFL teacher for a few years.

I'm late 30s, so while I would be a graduate, I wouldn't be "officially" a graduate...

wuffly

seachto7 wrote: »

I will (hopefully) have a journalism masters in the summer, but I have been working in online markering for the last 6+ years, so hopefully can combine the 2. I also worked as a technical writer for a while, and ironically a TEFL teacher for a few years.

I'm late 30s, so while I would be a graduate, I wouldn't be "officially" a graduate...

Realistically looking for work as a journalist will take time, a friend used to work as a photographer for the gulf news, and she started working here as a teacher, then for a small magazine. It's unlikely you'd get a journalist role without any experience of the region. I've seen some proof reading jobs which would be a good stepping stone. If i see anything i will post it on here.

sawdoubters

the middle east does not like journalist

http://www.indeed.ae/Journalist-jobs-in-Dubai

wuffly

sawdoubters wrote: »

the middle east does not like journalist

http://www.indeed.ae/Journalist-jobs-in-Dubai

I don't see your point?

murphaph

sawdoubters wrote: »

the middle east does not like journalist

http://www.indeed.ae/Journalist-jobs-in-Dubai

Jesus, well over one thousand posts and you only joined a month ago!

FURET

seachto7 wrote: »

I will (hopefully) have a journalism masters in the summer, but I have been working in online markering for the last 6+ years, so hopefully can combine the 2. I also worked as a technical writer for a while, and ironically a TEFL teacher for a few years.

I'm late 30s, so while I would be a graduate, I wouldn't be "officially" a graduate...

I'm a tech writer. There aren't many of us in the UAE, but of those who are here, most seem to be Indian. I suspect that salaries depend hugely on the company, ranging from high to low. There seems to be a lot of online marketing jobs, too.

seachto7

I wouldn't expect it to be easy to find a job as a journalist easy to get anywhere in the world, not to mind Dubai. I'll have to try and combine my skills if at all possible.

I'm hoping to steer clear of 100% online marketing. As an old boss used to say: "You're not the right fit."

wuffly

http://www.gncareers.com/jobs/content-writer-dubai-61969312-d?contextType=browse

not sure what the salary is like, gulf news is a good place to look. There are a lot of marketing companies with their middle east base in dubai, they wont all be online/telemarketing jobs you just have to wade through the crap. leo burnett, weber shandwick, hill & knowlton, dabo & co, working with any of these would get you local exp and connections and help you move into journalism, its not all fluff my friend did war correspondence for the gulf news.