Dubai Airports has bolstered its flexible working options and family care policies for women, to support a better work-life balance and encourage higher motivation, performance and productivity, among its female employees.

Dubai Airports has introduced flexible working hours and remote working options, in addition to boosting family care polices such as maternity leave benefits. Dubai Airports' 350 strong female workforce can opt to work remotely for up to two days per week and take advantage of flexible working hours to give them more flexibility to manage work and personal commitments.

Meshari Al Bannai, EVP Human Resource & Development at Dubai Airports, said: "In the current climate the threat of burnout is very real and can impact women's advancement in the workforce, in particular, as they try to balance work with personal life in the midst of the pandemic.

“At Dubai Airports we understand the importance of quality of life and supporting the growth of a prosperous nation through having a sustainable and healthy society. We know that enhancing wellbeing and reducing stress leads to better motivation and more productivity, which is why we've enhanced our policies to improve flexible and remote working options to support women in the workplace."

According to the International Labour Organisation's World Employment and Social Outlook Trends 2020 report, the Covid-19 pandemic has caused a major clash of professional and personal responsibilities, completely changing work and home life around the world. It found that women still bear the majority of childcare responsibilities and home care duties, with gender stereotypes that very much still emphasise the role of women as the main caregivers.

 In addition to flexible working, Dubai Airports has also enhanced its maternity leave which now provides women with five months maternity leave, and the option to extend this further by using additional annual leave. There are also additional family care policies to support new mothers of children of determination or mothers with infants in neo-natal care.

Further special arrangements can also be made to support employees during pregnancy to ensure the health and safety of the employee and her unborn baby. These include changes to shifts, temporary placement in other roles, reduced working hours, allocation of nearby parking options and remote working. – TradeArabia News Service