Qatar is a small, Middle Eastern nation, with Doha as its capital. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia and the Persian Gulf. It is regarded as the most advanced Arab state for human development with a high-income economy with the world’s third-largest reserves of oil and national gas. It is expected to host the 2022 FIFA World Cup, making it the first Arab country to do so. Known for its futuristic skyscrapers among other ultramodern architectures, Qatar’s economy has grown recently, mostly attributable to oil and gas exploration, innovation, and technology. Fruits, vegetables, poultry, and fish farming form the largest elements of Qatar’s foreign trade. Qatar has an estimated population of 2, 314,307 people, all with very low unemployment. This is attributable to Qatari economic success when, in 1973, oil and gas exploration became the backbone of Qatar’s economy, contributing to over 70 % of the government’s revenue. Qatar’s culture is traditionally Bedouin culture, with some influence from India, East Africa, as well as in the Persian Gulf. Official languages include Arabic and English. The majority of Qatari’s are Muslims, with Christians, Hindus, and Buddhists comprising a significant minority
Employment contracts concluded for an indefinite duration are considered permanent employment in Qatar. If an employment contract signed for a fixed-term is not renewed, but the parties continue to abide by it after its expiration, the agreement is considered to have been renewed for an unlimited duration.
Qatar's Labor Code requires an employment contract to be made in writing, authenticated by the Labor Department, and produced in three copies. The employee and employer are both provided with one copy each, and one copy is submitted to the Labor Department. The contract must contain the following information:
Name of the employer and place of work
Name, qualifications, nationality, profession, and residence of the worker, as well as proof necessary for identification
Date of conclusion of the contract
Nature and type of the work and place of contracting
Date of commencement of the work
Period of the contract if the contract is of a definite duration
Agreed wage as well as the method and date of payment.
Qatar's Labor Code defines temporary employment as work that by its nature requires its execution within a limited period or as work that focuses on a particular task and ends with the completion thereof. The Labor Code only addresses the recruitment of foreign nationals, not Qatari nationals. Agencies can recruit temporary workers from abroad, but may not charge recruitment fees to the worker. Recruitment contracts between agencies and employers must be concluded in writing using Form 5 provided by the Ministry of Civil Service and Housing.
Qatar's Labor Code states that the employment contract can include a clause for probation, provided the duration of probation does not exceed six months from the date of commencement of work. The employee cannot be subject to more than one probationary period for the same employer. Employers may terminate the employment contract before the probationary period's expiration if the employee fails to carry out their duties as per the employment contract.
Qatar's Labor Law stipulates that the maximum ordinary working hours are 48 hours per week and 8 hours per day. During Ramadan, working hours are reduced to 36 hours per week and 6 hours per day. The time spent by employees commuting to and from the workplace and their residence is not considered a part of the working hours.
Any work done in excess of the maximum ordinary working hours is considered overtime. The working hours for employees under 18 years of age are set at 36 hours per week or 6 hours per day.
Qatar's Labor Law entitles employees to annual leave after they complete 1 year of service. The annual leave is 3 weeks for employees who have worked for less than 5 years, and 4 weeks for employees who have worked for more than 5 years. An employee is entitled to leave for the fractions of the year in proportion to the duration of their service.
The employee's remuneration during annual leave is their basic wage at the commencement of leave. If the employee works on a piecework basis, the remuneration shall be based on the employee's average remuneration for the three months preceding the commencement of annual leave.
The employer shall determine the date of the annual leave for the employee according to the work requirements and may divide the leave with the employee's consent provided that it is not broken up into more than 2 periods.
At the employee's request, the employer may postpone not more than half of the annual leave to the following year.
Per Qatar's Labor Code, employees are entitled to annual paid sick leave after 3 months of service. The employee must prove their illness through a medical report issued by a competent physician approved by the employer. The employee gets paid their full wage for the first 2 weeks of sick leave. If the leave extends beyond that, the employee is paid 50% of their salary for the next 4 weeks. Any sick leave required beyond that is unpaid and lasts until the employee resumes their work or their service is terminated for health reasons.
Employment can be terminated at the end of the 12th week of the sick leave if a competent physician's report proves that the employee cannot resume work at that time.
Qatari labor law provides a maternity leave of 50 days with full pay to female employees who have at least 1 year of service with their employer. The postnatal leave must be no less than 35 days. If the remaining leave period (after birth) is fewer than 30 days, the employee may be granted a complementary leave, the duration of which will be deducted from her annual leave. Otherwise, the complementary period will be considered to be leave without pay.
Employers must not dismiss an employee for taking maternity leave or send a notice of termination during this period.
Male employees have no statutory entitlement to paternity leave under Qatari law.
Per Qatar's Labor Code, an employment relationship for an indefinite term can be terminated by either the employee or the employer without any reason by providing a written notice. If the employee's service period is two years or less, the notice period must be at least one month. If the service period is more than two years, the notice period must be at least two months.
For fixed-term contracts, the duration of the notice period is as follows:
If the employee has worked for less than 1 year, the notice period is at least 1 week
If the employee has worked for more than 1 year but less than 5 years, the notice period is at least 2 weeks
If the employee has worked for more than 5 years, the notice period is at least 1 month
The employer must pay the employee their full wage during the notice period if they perform their work in the usual manner during the notice period.
Qatari labor law requires employers to pay severance benefits to employees upon the termination of their service. The benefits must be equal to at least three weeks’ wages for every year of employment. Employees are entitled to severance benefits for the fractions of the year in proportion to the duration of employment. To become eligible for severance benefits, employees must have completed one year of service with the employer. If an employee is dismissed due to an act of gross misconduct, they are not eligible for severance benefits.
The last basic wage will be used as the basis for the calculation of the severance.
