In major change, UAE workweek to be Monday through Friday

By ISABEL DEBRE
Associated Press

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — The United Arab Emirates says that it is changing its official workweek to Monday to Friday, a change that will start next month. The UAE’s state-run WAM news agency said on Tuesday that as of January, government employees would work a half-day on Friday, the traditional Islamic holy day, and then take Saturday and Sunday off. It marks a major change, allowing the UAE’s financial district to work Western hours when they had previously been closed. Until now, the official workweek in the UAE, as in much of the Middle East, was Sunday through Thursday. The shift comes as the UAE seeks to bolster its business and tourist appeal as it faces stiffer regional competition.