Half of visa labor applications in UAE have been rejected in the first four months of this year, according to official figures.
Statistics by the ministry of labor and social affairs show that the ministry approved 55,241 new labor visas between January 1 and the end of April, reported the Gulf News on Tuesday.
During the same period, a similar number of visa applications was rejected, said the paper.
The ministry’s undersecretary Khalid Al Khazraji, said that the largest number of labor permits, 14,827, went to workers from Arab countries. Permits for 13,783 Indian workers were also approved.
Workers from the remaining Asian countries of Pakistan, Bangladesh and the Philippines received 22,862 labor visas, he said.
Employees from Europe and the United States received 2,506 permits and workers from Africa and other countries 1,380.
Denying that there was a ban on workers from any particular country, Al Khazraji said the committee that approves labor permits had taken into account "the cultural diversity of the work force in the private sector" and the need to create "an equilibrium among the demographic structure of the labor force."
Al Khazraji said the ministry had implemented its cultural diversity policy to ensure each company's work force reflected the UAE's demographic distribution.
He added that the ministry had no plans to establish quotas for expatriate workers but was keen on maintaining a balance among nationalities – Albawaba.com
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