Human Times

Middle East Edition

18th September 2026

THE HOT STORY

UAE people leaders gather to chart the future of work

The UAE's HR leaders gathered at InsuranceMarket.ae’s Work Reimagined UAE: The Next Era of HR, Culture & Employee Experience event in Dubai to urge a shift in how organisations approach people management as benefits, culture, retention and technology become increasingly important to business performance. Speakers included Shalni Babur, chief people officer at Alfred Holdings, who observed that HR itself has been redefined. "HR's role, which was initially seen as an administrative function, then became a strategic partner, is now becoming more of an architect of the organisation," she said. Industry experts told attendees that HR must move beyond administrative support to play a more strategic role in productivity, employee experience and workforce planning.

Gulfnews.com

LEGAL

UAE arrests international gang leader wanted by Interpol

The UAE's Ministry of Interior has announced the arrest of an unnamed Swedish national, the leader of an international criminal gang, who was wanted under an Interpol Red Notice for money laundering. The operation, a collaboration between the UAE and Sweden, also led to the apprehension of six gang members. Investigations revealed the network handled approximately 70m Swedish kronor (Dh26.5m) over ten months, using cash and cryptocurrencies. Anders Wiberg, Police Commissioner of the Swedish Police Authority, praised the countries' cooperation, saying: "The close and effective cooperation with the United Arab Emirates was a key factor in achieving the successful outcome of this case."

Khaleej Times Online

TRAINING & DEVELOPMENT

Qatar ministry introduces individual development plans

Qatar's Ministry of Education and Higher Education (MoEHE) has conducted a workshop to introduce a new framework for individual development plans. Aimed at senior officials, the workshop focused on enhancing professional development pathways and fostering a culture of continuous learning. Participants learned to identify development needs, set objectives, and implement plans effectively. Latifa Al Kuwari, head of the Administrative Training Section, highlighted the framework's importance in aligning employee needs with job requirements. She said: "Our role at the Training and Development Centre is to support the effective implementation of this framework."

The Peninsula

TECHNOLOGY

More than two-thirds of UAE workers use AI

Over 70% of the UAE's working-age population now uses artificial intelligence, according to Microsoft's AI Diffusion Report. Amr Kamel, managing director of Microsoft UAE, said: "The UAE is already beyond the question of whether people will adopt AI." He emphasised the need for businesses to focus on how to leverage this capability for improved productivity and decision-making. Kamel noted that organisations should start with specific business problems rather than an AI budget to achieve meaningful returns.

Gulfnews.com

HIRING

Riyadh fines 10 firms for providing unlicensed recruitment services

Saudi Arabia's Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development has imposed fines on 10 establishments for providing recruitment and labour services without the necessary licences. The penalties range from SR200,000 for a first offence to SR250,000 for repeated violations. The ministry said it conducted inspections to protect customer rights and ensure compliance. It urged customers to use authorised channels, such as Musaned, the unified recruitment platform for domestic workers, which enhances transparency and safeguards contractual rights. The ministry continues to monitor the sector through inspections and electronic surveillance.

Gulfnews.com

HEALTH & WELLBEING

Vaccine hesitancy stalls measles eradication, Gates says

Microsoft founder Bill Gates, whose eponymous ‌foundation focuses on global health ‌and the world's poorest people, has said that vaccine hesitancy in wealthy nations has made eradicating measles in such countries a distant goal. He observed that while measles was once nearly eliminated in affluent countries, recent years have seen a resurgence in cases due to declining vaccination rates. Gates nevertheless said that vaccine hesitancy had not spread to lower-income countries, where measles can be ⁠much deadlier. “There's always that concern that ⁠if you have doubters in the US, that becomes a global thing . . . But we haven't seen an increase in vaccine hesitancy in the countries the foundation works in,” he said.

U.S. News

CYBERSECURITY

Payroll system of mosques and madrasahs hit by ransomware

The SmartHRMS payroll system, used by mosques and madrasahs under the Islamic Religious Council of Singapore (MUIS), suffered a ransomware attack in August, compromising sensitive staff information. Avelogic, the system's provider, reported the incident to the police and the Personal Data Protection Commission (PDPC). Although the hackers encrypted the system and backups, Avelogic said: "Our investigation found no evidence that data was stolen in bulk." Recovery efforts are underway, with the aim to restore services by September 18. MUIS confirmed that business continuity measures are in place to support essential functions.

Straits Times

INTERNATIONAL

Barclays faces growing UK backlash over back-to-office rule reversal

Thousands of Barclays employees in the UK have signed an open letter asking the bank to rethink its decision to increase in-office work. As of next month, Barclays wants staff who have been expected to be in the office for two days per week to attend for at least three. The Unite union, which represents 36,000 staff, is calling on Barclays to reverse this mandate and is advocating for exemptions and a one-off payment to cover rising travel and childcare costs. Rick Coyle, Unite national officer, said that employees are delivering strong financial results under the current flexible working policy. He said that Barclays is "trying to fix a problem that doesn't exist" in making its working-from-home rules less flexible. Barclays said office requirements vary by business area and are intended to balance flexibility with the benefits of working together in person. The bank declined to say how many staff would be affected by the rules change, but the BBC understands that there are different rules depending on teams, with, for example, investment bankers expected to be in the office for five days per week.

Korean workers take legal action against US over Georgia raid

More than 300 South Korean workers who were detained in an immigration raid at a Hyundai Motor Group-LG Energy Solution joint venture battery plant in the US state of Georgia have started filing administrative claims with nine federal agencies, including the Department of Homeland Security, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), Customs and Border Protection, the FBI and the Departments of Justice and Labor. The claims, which are a necessary step before pursuing lawsuits under the Federal Tort Claims Act, allege unlawful detention and poor conditions at an ICE facility. An attorney representing the workers aims to submit all claims by year-end. Both companies have sought to distance themselves from the legal actions. An LG Energy Solution official told The Korea Times the company would not become involved because the legal actions were based on individual decisions by the workers. The raid, which occurred on September 4, 2025, was the largest single-site enforcement action in ICE's history.

Chinadaily US Edition

The Korea Times

Germany seeks UniCredit guarantees over Commerzbank takeover

German finance minister Lars Klingbeil has met UniCredit chief executive Andrea Orcel to seek guarantees over the future of Commerzbank, as the Italian lender prepares to complete a takeover of its Frankfurt-headquartered rival. "It is of paramount importance to the federal government that Commerzbank can continue to fulfil its vital role in financing the German economy," Klingbeil said after the meeting. "We expect Commerzbank to remain a listed company headquartered in Frankfurt and to continue its strong focus on financing small- and medium-sized businesses." German finance ministry spokesperson Maximilian Kall added: "The most important [point] of all . . . regards the over 40,000 employees. We want to protect their interests."

India's unemployment rate holds at 5% in August

India's unemployment rate remained stable at 5% in August. Urban joblessness increased to 6.8% from 6.7% in July, but this rise was countered by a decrease in rural unemployment, which fell to 4.1% from 4.5%. The Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI) reported that the overall labour-force participation rate edged up to 55.6%. Female participation also increased to 34.8%. MoSPI noted that the overall unemployment rate among men decreased to 4.9%, while women's unemployment fell to 5.1%. The data is based on the Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS).

Livemint.com

OTHER

Majid Al Futtaim, Nestlé and Sparklo expand smart recycling across UAE Carrefour stores

Majid Al Futtaim, Nestlé UAE, and Sparklo have partnered to expand artificial intelligence (AI)-powered reverse vending machines across selected Carrefour stores in the UAE, allowing customers to recycle plastic bottles and aluminium cans and earn rewards through the Sparklo app. The initiative is expected to recover more than 1.4m containers and avoid approximately 200 tonnes of CO₂ emissions, building on Carrefour’s existing programme with Sparklo, which has collected more than 22m recyclable items since 2023.

Zawya

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