The Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratisation (MoHRE) will begin accepting applications for the first edition of the Emirates Labour Market Award on June 1, 2023, WAM reports.

The Award, approved by the UAE Cabinet in March, will be held under the patronage of His Highness Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Vice President, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of the Presidential Court.

The Award aims to enhance the UAE labour market’s competitiveness, improve its productivity and efficiency, recognise outstanding practices in the work environment, and protect and encourage the workers’ rights while advancing well-being and quality of life for the workforce across private sector establishments, the Ministry said.

Announcing details about the award at a media briefing in Dubai on Wednesday, Dr. Abdulrahman Al Awar, Minister of Human Resources and Emiratisation and Chairman of the Award’s Supervisory Committee, expressed his appreciation to His Highness Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed “for continuously supporting all efforts to improve the local business environment and further ease doing business in the UAE, and his generous patronage of this award.

He added that the award is inspired by the country's leadership vision towards bolstering the advanced development ecosystem in the UAE that has established a comprehensive and encouraging investment environment.

“The annual award is a major contribution to the business environment in the UAE. It reflects the leadership’s keenness to enhance the UAE’s competitiveness and accelerate building a comprehensive economy that is the strongest, most active, most diverse, and fastest-growing in the world,” he added.

The award is subdivided into three main categories: the Establishments Category, which acknowledges leading establishments in the labour market that have contributed to managing employment relationships exceptionally; the Workforce Category, which recognises the outstanding workforce that has served the UAE’s businesses and community; and the Business Service Partners Category, which acknowledges companies that have helped develop the best-in-class labour market practices.

A winner will be awarded for each category, with a total of three awards given. Winning entities must be registered in MoHRE’s database and have been in the labour market for two years or more. They must not be government-owned, have had a judicial ruling issued against them, or have had any penalties imposed on them for violating the labour legislation in force in the UAE during the previous year. It must also commit to completing the nomination application and the award's timeframe. Entities that win the award are not entitled to participate in the award until two sessions have been held since they received the award.