More than 44,000 workers in the UAE received payouts from the Workers Protection Program by the end of June 2026, with disbursements exceeding AED320 million ($87.1 million) in the first half of the year alone. Combined with the Unemployment Insurance Scheme, which has paid out more than AED512 million ($139.4 million) since its 2024 launch, the figures point to a labour-market safety net that is now processing sizeable sums for workers across the private sector.
For UAE residents and employers, the numbers matter because they track how well the country's worker-protection infrastructure is functioning in practice, not just on paper. The Workers Protection Program paid an average of roughly AED7,000 per worker in the period, and by the end of 2025 it covered 99 percent of the workforce, having disbursed more than AED300 million to over 38,000 workers that year.
Wage rules tighten from June 2026
New rules effective June 1, 2026 require most private-sector employers to pay the previous month's wages by the first day of the following Gregorian month, using the Wage Protection System or another approved channel. This follows an upgraded wage system introduced by the Ministry of Human Resources and Emiratization in December 2025, which covered more than 99 percent of private-sector workers and processed over AED35 billion in monthly salary transfers at launch.
