UAE Companies Are Hiring International Remote Workers to Reduce Costs

In a bid to reduce costs and enhance profitability, various companies in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) hire remote workers outside the country.

According to recruitment consultants in the UAE, remote workers are mostly hired by companies from Asia, the Middle East, and South Africa.

As per Hays’ GCC Salary Guide for 2024, 87% of the companies will hire permanent employees this year. However, 19% revealed that they would be hiring temporary contract employees, while 16 percent would get freelancers.

“There’re a lot of companies out there that will help you set up an entire remote working team in places where salaries are less than the UAE and train them. Most companies might consider this model as a cheaper alternative in the long run. I have seen this with recruitment agencies, technology companies, and fields related to customer service a lot,” said Nicki Wilson, managing director of recruitment consultancy Genie.

Furthermore, sectors, like sales lead acquisition, technology, data, and performance marketing, are increasingly embracing remote work arrangements.

Mayank Patel, Vice President of Sales for EEMENA and Country Head of Adecco Middle East, a global HR firm, highlighted that workplace dynamics, including remote work, have experienced a slight shift this year. While some employers favor fully remote roles, others are transitioning back to office settings or adopting hybrid work models.

“In either case, companies prefer their employees to come to the office for certain days of the week while also maintaining work-life balance with hybrid working policy,” he added.

Foreign professionals can apply for remote work visas through the General Directorate of Residency and Foreigners Affairs (GDRFA).

Nicki Wilson revealed that this practice saves companies 50-75 percent in salaries.

“Companies must be aware, though, that some people still prefer to deal with people on the ground, or they can tell if they are being called by, let’s say, a customer service representative from abroad. It can also affect the reputation of a business, so training and quality checking is essential if this is the route a business is going to take,” she added.

Mayank Patel stated that the salary scale for remote employees is determined solely by factors such as job responsibilities, candidate expertise, and the company’s compensation policy.

“If the role is niche, strategic, demands a high level of expertise and technical skills, these individuals are paid even higher than the non-remote employee,” he said.

Patel further elaborated that remote work is typically suitable for short-term projects, and certain remote roles may involve minimal or no collaboration among team members during project execution.

“Functions such as customer service, consultancy, marketing and communication, creative design, certain sales positions, certain IT roles such as software engineer or data analyst, recruitment, back office administration, etc. might have employees working remotely or with hybrid working module.”

Patel added that while many roles are filled locally, there are situations where companies seek talent from abroad. This occurs when the role is highly specialized, talent is scarce locally, or the job can be efficiently performed remotely.

“Some of the most popular countries where talent is hired remotely include Asia, the Middle East, and North Africa, which have huge potentials of highly skilled talent that can deliver a job remotely.”

According to Nicki Wilson, countries experiencing an increase in remote work opportunities include India, CIS countries, South Africa, and Sri Lanka.

“In addition, there is a lot of tech talent based out of the Netherlands and other Scandinavian countries.”

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