Dubai, 2 July 2025: Dubai has officially launched a four-day work week and shorter working hours for all public sector workers from 1 July to 12 September. Part of ‘Our Flexible Summer’ initiative for 2025, this progressive program is designed to enhance work-life balance, boost productivity, and support family cohesion during the summer season – marking Dubai as one of the few global cities to introduce flexible working at this scale.
This follows a successful trial in 2024, across 21 government entities in Dubai, which found to increase overall employee satisfaction by 98% and improve happiness among workers, in addition to enhanced productivity and an improved work environment.
Now rolled out across the entire Dubai Government, this move aligns with the UAE’s ‘Year of Community’, reinforcing the city’s commitment to people-first policies and a sustainable, future-facing work culture.
Government employees will be divided into two groups with the following options:
- In Group 1, employees work from Monday to Thursday for 8 hours daily, with Friday off, for a total of 32 work hours.
- The 2nd Group works 7 hours per day from Monday to Thursday and 4.5 hours on Friday, for a total of 32.5 hours per week.
Abdullah Ali bin Zayed Al Falasi, Director General of the Dubai Government Human Resources Department said, “This initiative demonstrates our firm commitment to enhancing the government work environment, making it more adaptable and responsive to the needs of employees and the community. This supports Dubai’s aspirations to lead in delivering flexible, sustainable, and people-centric government services.”
Dubai’s flexible work strategy arrives as the global conversation around shorter work weeks continues to gain traction – including in Australia, where some companies have trialled four-day weeks and hybrid arrangements to combat burnout and improve employee wellbeing.
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About the Dubai Department of Economy and Tourism (DET)
With the ultimate vision of making Dubai the world’s leading commercial centre, investment hub and tourism destination, the Dubai Department of Economy and Tourism (DET) is mandated to support the Government in positioning the emirate as a major hub for global economy and tourism, and in boosting the city’s economic and tourism competitiveness indicators, in line with the goals of the Dubai Economic Agenda, D33, which aims to double the size of the emirate’s economy and consolidate its position among the top three global cities over the next decade.
Under this remit, DET is driving efforts to further enhance Dubai’s diversified, innovative service-based economy to attract top global talent, deliver a world-class business environment and accelerate productivity growth. Additionally, DET is supporting Dubai’s vision to become the world’s best city to visit, live and work in by promoting its diverse destination proposition, unique lifestyle and outstanding quality of life, overall.
DET is the principal authority for planning, supervising, developing and marketing Dubai’s business and tourism sectors. It is also responsible for licensing and classifying all types of businesses, including hotels, tour operators and travel agents. DET’s portfolio includes Dubai Economic Development Corporation (DEDC), Dubai Business Registration and Licensing Corporation (DBLC), Dubai Corporation for Consumer Protection and Fair Trade (DCCPFT), Dubai SME, Dubai Corporation for Tourism and Commerce Marketing (DCTCM), Dubai Festivals and Retail Establishment (DFRE) and Dubai College of Tourism (DCT).
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