Etihad offers short-haul to Emirati cabin crew

Etihad Airways, Abu Dhabi’s flag carrier, has offered to exempt Emirati cabin crew from overnight flights in a bid to boost the number of UAE nationals taking up roles at the airline. The state-backed airline said UAE staff would be allowed to fly exclusively on short-haul routes, avoiding overnight stints that could be in breach of “cultural sensitivities”. The offer intends to “ensure Emirati nationals for whom an overnight stay away from home might pose a cultural problem were not dissuaded from applying for a cabin crew position,” a spokesperson for the airline said in an emailed statement. The airline declined to specify whether expatriates applicants would be offered the same opportunity.  The UAE, which depends on foreign workers to fill its jobs, has ramped up efforts to employ Emiratis in the private sector as the government sector reaches saturation. The Gulf state, which must generate 20,000 jobs a year over the next decade to employ its young people, has implemented hiring quotas for private companies, offering visa perks and other incentives to companies that hire nationals. There are 35,000 unemployed Emiratis in the UAE, and only seven percent of nationals work in the private sector, according to statistics from the Ministry of Economy. Abdulkhaleq Abdulla, professor of Political Science at United Emirates University, said private companies needed to offer more incentives to increase their number of Emirati staff. “Any incentive that encourages Emiratisation should be welcomed whether it is from the private sector or the government sector,” he said. “Emiratisation is a very difficult task and the more it is encouraged, the better it is for the country and its stability.”