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UAE motorists’ alert: New speed limit to come into force from Aug 12

Agencies
August 8, 2018

Abu Dhabi, Aug 8: Beginning August 12, motorists crossing the set speed limits on Abu Dhabi roads, even by 1kmph, will be fined for speeding as the Abu Dhabi Police have decided to abolish 20kmph speed limit buffer.

The General Directorate of Abu Dhabi Police announced earlier hat the speed limit on the roads will be revised and motorists can no longer enjoy the buffer from August 12 onwards. Speed limits on highways and internal roads will be increased by the buffer margin from this date.

Major-General Mohammed Khalfan Al Romaithi, Commander-in-Chief of the Abu Dhabi Police and a member of the Executive Council, said that the decision to amend the speed limit on the roads was taken after several scientific studies.

Earlier this month, the Abu Dhabi Police hinted at plans to abolish the speed limit buffer on certain roads in the Capital.

Currently, most roads in the Capital have a buffer that allows motorists to travel 20kmph faster than what is advertised as the speed limit, without being penalised or fined.

An Abu Dhabi Police official told Khaleej Times that enhancing road safety and security and reducing the number of road accidents, injuries and fatalities is a priority for the authorities.

"The Abu Dhabi Police will continue to do what we can to ensure the safety of all road users in the Capital. We urge all motorists to be cautious on the roads, to drive safely, watch their speed limit, ensure they and their passengers are buckled up, not to use their mobile phones while driving, to keep a safe distance between vehicles and to abide by other road rules," the official said.

In January, the Abu Dhabi Police revealed that motorists in the emirate were slapped with 4.6 million traffic fines in 2017, with a majority being related to speeding.

Speeding topped the list of traffic violations which comprised 79.8 per cent of the total fines.

The police announced that speeding tickets reached 3.8 million last year, whereas in 2016, speeding tickets reached 3.7 million. However, officials have not yet revealed the total number of speeding tickets slapped on motorists this year.

The Abu Dhabi Police adopted a set of recommendations and technical procedures that will contribute to implementing the new speed limit.

Major-General Al Romaithi pointed out that the decision on the new speed limits and the removal of the speed buffer, was based on scientific studies carried out by a specialised team of the General Command of Abu Dhabi Police, departments of transport and urban planning and municipalities.

He stressed that the studies focused on conducting a traffic survey to identify the road behaviour of drivers compared to the speed limit of the road, and comparisons of standard speed and speed limit buffer. Some countries have achieved outstanding results in traffic safety levels after such studies. Major-General Al Romaithi urged the motorists to deal positively with the new road speed limits.

 

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News Network
May 5,2020

Dubai, May 5: A Saudi ministerial decision issued on Monday allows companies in the private sector to reduce salaries by 40 per cent and allows termination of contracts owing to the economic hardships resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic, according to daily newspaper Al Sharq Awsat.

The new decision was still not published by the cabinet according to the newspaper.

The decision which the newspaper saw a copy of was signed by Saudi Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development to regulate the labour contract in the current period, allows employers to reduce the employees salaries by 40 percent of the actual effective wage for a period of 6 months, in proportion to the hours of work and allowing the termination of employee contract after 6 months of the COVID-19 circumstances.

The new decision has also included a provision in which the employer would be allowed to cut wages even he or she benefits from the subsidy provided by the goverment, such as those for helping pay workers wages or exemption from government fees.

The decision also stressed that employers are not allowed to terminate any employee, unless three conditions are met.

1.            First the passing of six months since the measures of salary cut has been taken

2.            Reducing pay, annual leave and exceptional leave were all used

3.            Company proves that its facing financial troubles due to the circumstances.

The memo, which goes into affect as soon as its published in the government’s official newspaper, ensures that the employee will receive his/her salary if on annual leave within the period of 6 months.

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Agencies
May 25,2020

Abu Dhabi, May 25: Dusty weather to persist in the UAE on Monday as well with a chance of rainfall in parts of the country, the national Met department reported.

According to the NCM, the weather today will be fair to partly cloudy, with a chance of some convective clouds formation by afternoon - eastward and northward - extending to some internal areas that may be associated with some rainfall.

The weather will get humid by night and Tuesday morning over some coastal areas.

NCM predicts a wet Eid break.

Sharjah Police issued a weather warning as heavy rain flooded roads in Sharjah's Kalba among other areas.

Moderate to fresh winds will gain strength during the day causing blowing dust and sand.

The sea will be slight to moderate in the Arabian Gulf and in Oman Sea.

Earlier on Sunday, a weather alert was issued by authorities as moderate to heavy rain - accompanied with hail - lashed parts of the UAE. A rainbow in Dubai skies cheered up residents, celebrating a unique Eid this year amid the coronavirus Covid-19 pandemic - by mostly staying home.

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Agencies
June 9,2020

Dubai, Jun 9: Dubai's Emirates airline has begun laying off employees to reduce cost and save cash as the carrier looks to rightsize its workforce.

"We at Emirates have been doing everything possible to retain the talented people that make up our workforce for as long as we can. However, given the significant impact that the pandemic has had on our business, we simply cannot sustain excess resources and have to rightsize our workforce in line with our reduced operations. After reviewing all scenarios and options, we deeply regret that we have to let some of our people go," the spokesperson said in the statement.

Citing sources, Reuters and Bloomberg earlier reported that a majority of those being made redundant are cabin crew workers as well as a minority of its engineers and pilots, including those flew the Airbus A380.

"This was a very difficult decision and not one that we took lightly. The company is doing everything possible to protect the workforce wherever we can. Where we are forced to take tough decisions we will treat people with fairness and respect. We will work with impacted employees to provide them with all possible support," said the statement.

The spokesperson, however, didn't disclose how many employees are being made redundant in this latest round of rightsizing the workforce.

Emirates on Sunday confirmed that it extended the period of reduced pay for its staff for another three months till September. It had previously reduced basic wages by 25 to 50 per cent for three months from April, with junior employees exempted.

The airline had employed around 60,000 people at the end of its 2019-20 financial year.

Saj Ahmad, chief analyst at StrategicAero Research, said the announced job cuts at Emirates will likely not be the last given the unprecedented damage that Covid-19 has had not just on air travel, but on the entire aviation industry as a whole.

"Emirates' massive international network means that job reductions were always a last resort option as the company staves off cash burn and expenses at a time when revenues are dried up. While Emirates SkyCargo is enjoying a resurgence in activities, the reality is that this income will never offset the lost money from passenger operations," he added.

"Whilst some salary reduction schemes have prevented bigger job cuts for now, the absence of a cure or medicinal suppressant of Covid-19 means that air travel is unlikely to even reach pre-9/11 levels within 3-5 years, let alone pre-Covid-19 levels in that same time period. For that reason, Emirates' reduction in headcount is necessary to stay competitive, agile and be ready for when air travel can resume with a degree of normalcy that we have been accustomed to for decades," said Ahmad.

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