Oman: New trade union regulation – Key points for employers

1. A new minimum workforce threshold for trade unions

Under the new rules, a trade union may only be formed in an establishment employing at least 51 employees. For employers, this means union formation is now expressly limited to larger establishments.

2. Smaller establishments can still have employee representatives

If an establishment has 50 employees or fewer, employees cannot form a trade union under the new rules.  That does not mean there will be no employee representation.

Where no trade union exists, employees may select between three and five representatives from among themselves. Those representatives may act for the purposes of applying the relevant trade union rules, and in connection with collective labour disputes, strikes and lockouts.

So, even where a formal trade union cannot be set up, employers may still need to engage with an organised employee representative group.

3. Employer obligations: some practical points 

Where a trade union exists, employers have a number of legal obligations. 

Facilities must be provided

The employer must provide the facilities needed for it to operate, including:

• a suitable office;
• office equipment;
• computers;
• internet access;
• a landline; and
• secure document storage.

Access rights to employment-related information

A trade union has the right to access certain administrative and financial information linked to employees’ rights, including matters such as training, promotions, wages and disciplinary penalties, subject to confidentiality requirements.

For employers, this means HR records and decision-making should be well organised and capable of standing up to scrutiny.

Paid time off: who gets it?

One of the most important points for employers is that paid time off is not limited to workplace union representatives.

Different rights apply depending on whether the employee is acting at:

• trade union level;
• sectoral general union level; or 
• General Federation of Oman Workers (GFOW) level.

Trade union level

At workplace trade union level, paid time off applies to:

• members of the administrative board, for union tasks, board meetings, meetings with management, relevant training, and official summonses connected with union activity;
• one administrative board member, selected by the union’s administrative board, who is entitled to receive paid time off for union duties as follows:
  
  • 30 working days per year where the union has fewer than 100 members;
  • 90 working days per year where it has more than 100 and up to 300 members; or
  • full-time secondment to the union where membership exceeds 300; and
• members of the union’s general assembly, who are entitled to up to 30 working days per year to attend general assembly meetings and activities organised by or with the trade union. 

Entitlement to paid time off is therefore now broader than union representatives alone: it extends beyond the administrative board to general assembly members in certain circumstances.

Sectoral general union level

For sectoral unions, the position is more extensive:

• the chairperson and two administrative board members selected by the sector union’s board are entitled to full-time secondment to the sector union;
• other administrative board members are entitled to time off for union tasks, board meetings, relevant training and official summonses; and
• general assembly members of the sectoral union are entitled to up to 30 working days per year for general assembly meetings and activities organised by or with the sectoral general union.

General Federation of Oman Workers Union (GFOW)

At GFOW level:

• the chairperson, deputy chairperson and the chairperson’s assistants are entitled to full-time secondment to the GFOW;
• board members are entitled to paid time off to attend board and committee meetings, representative meetings, conferences and relevant training; and
• GFOW general assembly members are entitled to up to 30 working days per year for GFOW meetings and activities.

Employers with unionised workforces may be dealing not just with workplace union representatives, but also with employees holding positions at sectoral union or GFOW level, each with different statutory entitlements.

Pay and benefits continue during secondment

Employees seconded to or taking time off for union activity remain entitled to their:

• gross wage;
• promotions;
• annual/periodic increments; and
• other rights under applicable laws and workplace policies.

Secondment/time off also counts as part of continuous service. For union representative employees on full-time secondment, increments and promotion eligibility must continue by reference to the more favourable of the employee’s most recent performance appraisal or their average appraisal outcome over the previous three years.

In short, union secondment should not leave an employee financially worse off or interrupt normal service-related benefits.

Transportation may need to be provided

Employers must provide transportation for a trade union member carrying out union duties where the journey is 150 km or more from the headquarters of the trade union, sectoral union or GFOW, provided the employer is given the required 5 days’ prior notice, unless the matter is urgent.

Employers must not obstruct union activity

The employer must not take any step that obstructs union activity. 

This is a broad obligation. In practice, employers should be careful about refusing time off, failing to provide required facilities, or taking action that could be seen as retaliatory because of union involvement. 

Protection for union representatives

Union representatives are given specific protection. 

An employer cannot transfer a member of the administrative board of a trade union or sectoral union away from the workplace designated as:

• the workplace stated as the union’s headquarters in its articles of association; or
• another workplace designated for union activities,

unless that individual agrees.

In practical terms, employers should not move a union representative out of the relevant trade union workplace or activity location without consent.

There is also additional scrutiny of decisions taken against union office holders, founding or preparatory committee members, and employee representatives through a legal protection committee established by the Minister of Labour. 

Existing unions stay in place

Trade unions and sectoral unions registered under the previous regime will continue unless dissolved under the new rules. Employers should therefore not assume that the new 51-employee threshold affects existing union structures.

Employers should now: 

• check headcount across the business to identify where trade union formation is now possible or restricted;
• plan for elected employee representatives in smaller establishments where a union cannot be formed;
• prepare for practical support obligations where a trade union exists, including office space, equipment, internet access, secure document storage and, where required, transportation;
• check whether any employees hold roles at trade union, sectoral general union or GFOW level;
• review and update policies to reflect statutory secondment and paid time off rights;
• train line managers and HR so they understand that union-related absence may be a legal entitlement, not a discretionary arrangement; 
• take care before transferring, disciplining or dismissing employees involved in union activity; and 
• avoid any conduct that could be seen as obstructing trade union action, including refusal to provide mandatory facilities or to recognise statutory secondment/time off rights.