British Expats - Spouse Working

Just read this in the Gulf News, legal advice section. So who actually needs to provide the necessary permission (if not the husband) and what form of documention is required? Many thanks for your input, guys and gals.

Can my wife work?

* Published: 23:59 October 3, 2010

SUBJECT
Employment

My wife is currently under my sponsorship in Dubai. She has found a temporary job for six months on a project. However, under her visa it is mentioned that she is not allowed to work. 1. Can she work under that status or does she have to get a work permit from DNRD, without transferring the sponsorship?
2. What are the penalties or sanctions that she might be facing if the inspection from DNRD catches her?

I would like to point out that allowing his wife to work without permission would be a violation of the labour law and in that case the punishment would be imprisonment or a fine for the sponsor and for the company, and there is also a possibility of deportation for the man’s wife. Therefore, I would advise the person posing the question to obtain a temporary work permit for his wife from the immigration department, to avoid violating the labour law, especially since getting this type of permission is fast and easy and there is no need for sponsorship to be transferred.