Resigning from the job can be a daunting task. The Qatar government has, therefore, brought in suitable laws and conditions for a person trying to resign from a company or a company asking for the person to leave it. In those conditions, here are the laws and conditions that one must know to safeguard their rights:
Notice Period:
The Notice Period is the timeframe given by the party which is terminating the contract of the employment. It depends completely o the employee’s period of service. Here is the breakup:
For the employees who receive a monthly salary:
- Less than 5 years: one month notice
- More than 5 years: two-month notice
For the employees who are on a contract basis and receive a salary on an hourly, daily, or weekly basis:
- Less than 1 year: one week notice
- More than 1 year and but less than 5 years: two weeks’ notice
- More than 5 years: one month notice
The notice period is a legal way of asking out of the contract of the employment and failing to do so appropriately means that the party who is terminating the contract will require paying compensation to the other party. In that case, the party needs to pay compensation equivalent to the wage of the notice period or the remaining part of it.
Conditions for the contractual employers
For the employees with limited contracts, if they wish to change jobs within the contract period, they will require having a No Objection Certificate (NOC) to switch jobs. If the employer does not give the NOC or refuses to give a NOC, then the employees would be banned from working in Qatar for the remaining part of the contract. Once the contract period gets over, the employee would be free to take on new employment without having to take any permission.
If the contract is an open-ended one, the employee would require a NOC if they have worked with the company for less than five years and if the employer refuses to give the NOC, the employee would be banned from working in Qatar for the remaining part of the contract till five years. If they have worked for the employer for five years, the employees need not take any approval before switching the company.
Exceptions
The government has brought in some reforms and reliefs in this regard where an employee can terminate the contract before its expiry and yet gets to keep their rights and sums including gratuity. This is applicable if,
- The employer has breached their obligations in the said contract
- The employer or manager assaults the employee physically or commits an immoral act on the employee or their family
- The employer misguided the employee about the contract at the start of the employment
- The job is dangerous and puts the employee’s health in crisis.
Wages during the notice period
As per the law, the employee must be given a full salary during the notice period. Once the notice period ends, salary and the other owed sums must be paid the employee before the end of the day. If the employee has not taken leave days during the employment, the employer must pay them for the left leaves.
Conditions of Repatriation
If an employee belongs to another country and has terminated the service, then the employer would be required to pay the cost required for the employee to return their home country. This sum needs to be given to the employee within two weeks after the termination of the contract. The employer would be exempted from this if the employee is joining another employer in Qatar.
