The United Arab Emirates will ring in 2022 with a drastic change to its workweek by adopting the "international weekend" with aims to align its economy with global markets, as well as attract foreign talent and investments.
For the last 15 years, the weekend in the UAE has been Friday and Saturday, which is currently the weekend in most (but not all) countries in the Middle East and North Africa.
What is the change to the UAE’s weekend?
Effective the 1st of January 2022, the UAE will become the first country in the world to adopt a four-and-a-half-day work week. This will see all public entities (federal establishments and government offices) across the UAE (Excluding the Emirate of Sharjah) operate four-and-a-half days per week, with the weekend starting mid-day Friday and lasting through to Sunday.
The Emirate of Sharjah will implement a three-day weekend, with the weekend starting on Friday and lasting through to Sunday.
Although the change exclusively effects public employees, it is expected that many private employers will follow suit. The private sector will be given the liberty to establish its own workweek by either opting for shorter working hours or continue with the current work hours however, this cannot exceed the limit of 48 hours per week.
Changes to Friday prayer’s timings
Typically, Friday prayers begin at dhuhr - between noon and 12.30pm (depending on the season).With the new work timings, Friday prayers across the UAE will begin at 1:15 pm to accommodate the new working week.
Changes to school timings
Some UAE schools may adopt longer days or shorter break times to accommodate the new workweek in 2022. From January, schools across the UAE will follow the four-and-a-half-day work week. For most schools, extracurricular activities will remain as is, with no radical changes to the timetables.