Oman workers must get six months to improve before dismissal

MUSCAT: Employers in Oman cannot terminate a worker merely by stating that the employee has failed to reach the required level of efficiency, without clearly identifying the areas of poor performance and giving the worker sufficient time to improve, according to an awareness notice issued by the General Federation of Oman Workers.

The federation highlighted a case in which a group of workers received notices from their company stating that their performance had not reached the required level of efficiency and that they were required to improve within a specified period, failing which procedures would be taken to terminate their services.

However, the notice issued to the workers did not clearly explain the specific areas of inefficiency or shortcomings on which the assessment was based. It also did not specify the level of performance the employees were expected to achieve.

The company had also given the workers a period of no more than three months to improve their performance before proceeding with termination procedures.

The General Federation of Oman Workers said the Labour Law regulates such cases through specific requirements and that simply stating that an employee is “inefficient” is not sufficient to justify termination.

The employer must clearly inform the worker of the particular shortcomings or aspects of inadequate performance and specify what improvements are required.

The worker must then be given an appropriate period of not less than six months to address the identified shortcomings and reach the required level of efficiency.

The federation also said that, where an employer intends to terminate a worker on these grounds, the employer must notify the Ministry of Labour three months before the date of termination of the employment contract.

Workers who receive such a performance-related warning have been advised to obtain a copy of the notice and ensure that the alleged shortcomings or areas of inefficiency are clearly specified.

They should also retain documents related to their performance, including performance evaluations, employment-related observations and relevant correspondence, as these records could become important in any subsequent dispute.

During the improvement period granted by the employer, workers should take steps to address the identified shortcomings and document the measures they have taken to improve their performance.

If an employee’s services are subsequently terminated on the grounds of poor performance and the worker believes that the termination decision violates the law or that the required procedures were not followed, the worker may submit a complaint to the competent authority.

According to the federation, such a complaint should be filed within 30 days from the date on which the worker is notified of the termination decision.