IndieG

Amy,
I think you better tell them - because they could terminate your employment soon after they find out and give you no notice (since you will be on probation in the first 6 months, they can do so without notice).

If your skills are highly sought or valued by them, they will offer you the job, pregnancy notwithstanding.

Good Luck with your decision!

Anya

Madam Medusa

I agree...the law is unlikely to be on your side here, and I am sure they would have no qualms about sending you back home if they found out and decided it didn't suit them...

MM, xx

Jammy_Dodgers

Maybe Anya, but that wont be much use if she is single and gets escorted out of the country, and visa runs to Oman wont make things fun either

IndieG

I didn't comment on the legal aspect since the others had already provided this information.

She may not be escorted out of the country....there are lots of women in jail here after giving birth out of wedlock. I would'nt advise taking any chances.

PS: No where did Amy mention anything about her marital status, so everyone's speculating!

Jammy_Dodgers

A pregnant woman has alleged that the company she worked for terminated her services recently — without giving any reason — because she was due to take maternity leave in a few months time.

http://uaecommunity.blogspot.com/200...1_archive.html

MJC

You're right, a woman cannot sponsor her own child without her spouse's permission.

Now that (I know for a fact) is FACT.

(There is a very, very slim chance that she can if the father/spouse has been convicted of a very serious crime and the mother can claim clemancy, but that is very, very rare, and it does depend a lot on the father agreeing to it)

There are ways around it, but the husband/father MUST give a letter of no objection AND be present at immigration when the visa etc. is sorted.

Miss Eck

What happens if you are married but use different surnames? Does that complicate matters? Or do you just pack your wedding cert in your overnight bag?!

Amy123

Well yes I am married recently and spend a good few months looking for a job until I found 3 good ones, two of which I declined and the other they are finalising procedures then I found out that I am a few weeks pregnant which was a total shock to me. In one of the job offers it was a must for them that they do a blood test to see whether the female they were employing was pregnant but it is not prerequisite in this job. And yes there is a 6 months probation preriod of which I can really work hard in and if they see that my skills are sought after then they could just give me the maternity leave which is actually not that long in the UAE, only 45 days and half paid as I haven't been working with them for more than one year. I doubt that there will be complications with escorting me out of the country as the company is very reputable and will want to save its image. So, what do you think of this course of action? Should I still make it clear when finalising the procedures?

Amy123

Hi Zannie

That is the opinion that many people told me that I shouldn't mention it as it was not quoted in the contract that I must inform them of such a thing and I can work with them until they see that I am pregnant (if pregnancy carries on as you mentioned, anything is possible). I can really work hard and then if they still want to fire me then I haven't lost much as I can go back to the UK and give birth there and then look for another job whilst I am out there maybe for the better. You never know it is all for the best! But tell me being pregnant are you able to work hard and prove yourself at work? I am sure you can if you are determined.

Beebop

I think you want to start looking at some of the very helpful websites there are on pregnancy. eg http://www.mumsnet.com/pregnancy/

Chances are you will be fine, my sister worked hard right up until near the end then got pre-eclampsia and had to go into hospital. There were women in hospital from much earlier in the pregnancy with various complications - it really is individual to each pregnancy.

Good luck!

W10

Seriously...the fact that you are considering not telling your new employer that you are pregnant shows something about the situation you may be putting yourself in. This is not like Europe when it comes to employee rights.

Border Reiver

Doesn't the UAE visa medical require a chest x-ray? Can't remember if I had to have one for the visa or if it was just a company requirement.

Jammy_Dodgers

Yes it does, and im sure thats not good for pregnant people.

They also take blood for HIV and Hep etc....not sure what else they test for

Amy, does your husband work out here?
If not you will be unable to sponsor your baby.

Eeyore

It's Zannie BTW...

True, but I suppose it depends on the company Amy is planning to work for, only she can make that decision and hopefully will know the company well enough to take that risk or not. Also, it is still very early days, and unfortunately a lot of pregnancies don't continue beyond the 12-13 week 'safe' zone, which may also happen, so Amy could have missed out on this job opportunity altogether. Obviously talking to the Labour Department first and taking their advice will help Amy decide the best way forward.

It's really hard for married women here of a certain age to get good jobs here. I went to several interviews last year and they ALL asked me when I was planning to get pregnant, when I refused to give them a definate answer, they didn't seem too pleased. I'm sure this was one of the main reasons I wasn't offered a job (as I found out afterwards, the posts were given to unmarried women.. I wonder why!!). OK, these woman may have suited the job better and have better experience, however, I felt that being married and at the time not having any children was in their eyes going to be a major problem as I was very likely I'd want to start a family and take maternity leave, which they'd want to avoid. Also just to add, these interviews were with big international companies, not just local based ones.

Amy, to answer your question, I'm not actually working. The last interview I had back in July asked me 'THAT' question, and I was told they would let me know the outcome the following week.... well I found out I was six weeks pregnant that week. I didn't get offered that job (which would have been a lovely job), so potentially I could have been in the same position as yourself. I haven't bothered looking for another job as once you're pregnant, you are pretty much unemployable (I have heard). However, I know of a few women here working whilst they are pregnant and have been pretty lucky with their employers, they haven't let their standards in work slip and in return their employers have been good to them. Obviously if there are complications in the pregnancy, it could be a problem, but I'm sure they cannot sack you for this. As W10 mentions and that I'm sure you are aware the employee rights here are not the same as Europe and it could be harder to fight an employer on these issues.

As I've mentioned, ask the Labour Department to inform you of all your rights so you know exactly where you stand.

Good luck

Zx

Eeyore

I didn't need a chest xray, just a blood test. Gareth had to have both, but as I'm classed as a spouse, for whatever reason I wasn't given one I noticed in the clinic, it was only the men that required a chest xray, all the women there just had a blood test.