The Labour Market in the UAE

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The UAE labour market is unlike that of other countries. Not only is the population of the UAE among the fastest growing in the world, but more than three quarters of the population is composed of non-citizens, most of whom are male, with more-or-less temporary residence visas. The majority of the population is also young, with 88 per cent under 45 years of age.

Many UAE citizens are employed by the public sector or in sectors where employment of local citizens is encouraged by the government, such as the financial sector. Unemployment is quite low compared to the rest of the world – approximately 4 per cent. This makes the UAE labour market unique, and companies setting up in the UAE will have to take these factors into consideration when planning their operations. In most cases, the majority of the workforce will have to be imported from abroad.

Population of the UAE and individual emirates, 2005

Emirate	Total	Females	Males
Abu Dhabi	1,628,000	568,000 (35%)	1,060,000 (65%)
Dubai	1,722,000	395,000 (23%)	1,327,000 (77%)
Sharjah	1,017,000	343,000 (34%)	674,000 (66%)
Ras Al Khaimah	241,000	90,000 (37%)	151,000 (63%)
Ajman	250,000	88,000 (35%)	162,000 (65%)
Fujairah	152,000	56,000 (37%)	96,000 (63%)
Umm Al-Qiwain	56,000	22,000 (39%)	34,000 (61%)
Total	5,066,000	1,562,000	3,504,000