Wages Protection System - UAE

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UAE ranks fifth in labour market efficiency The Ministry of Labour, in partnership with concerned parties, endeavour to provide an attractive labour environment ABU DHABI: The UAE has attained advanced positions within the Global Competitive Report of 2010 issued by the World Economic Forum in the area of factors determining the enhancement of labour market efficiency.

The report covers 139 countries worldwide, and has attributed the UAE’s advancement in this field to the efficiency and flexibility of its labour market, employment of qualified nationals, enhancement of professional code of ethics, in addition to other indicators specified in the report.

With respect to the labour market efficiency pillar, the report ranks the UAE fifth in the world for retaining national qualified manpower, the seventh in flexibility of wage determination, Tenth in professional code of ethics which stresses upon measurement of workforce productivity visa-vis working hours, and 17th on the flexibility mechanisms governing hiring and firing practices.

The Global Competitive Report, issued annually by the World Economic Forum, assesses the competitiveness of each country on the basis of certain indicators organised into 12 pillars,

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each of which represents an area considered as an important determinant of competitiveness. These pillars include: reports issued by international organisations, the infrastructure, macroeconomic environment, health and primary education, higher education and training, financial markets development, technological readiness, market size, goods market efficiency, business sophistication, innovation, and labour market efficiency pillar.

Saqr bin Ghobash’s comments Commenting on the report’s findings, Saqr bin Ghobash said: “The advanced positions attained by the UAE in the area of labour market efficiency reflects the political leadership’s vision for providing a sustainable and stable labour market based on the realisation of a balanced relationship between the rights and responsibilities of the bilateral production process i.e. workers and employers. This whole process is governed by the labour law on which contractual relations are based.”

He explained, “The Ministry of Labour, in partnership with concerned parties, endeavour to provide an attractive labour environment which helps in recruitment and retaining of qualified manpower, realisation of long-term sustainable development in conformity with the UAE Vision 2021, which aims to accomplish a flexible, diversified and knowledge-based economy, which attracts highly qualified Emiratis and the best expatriates available in the market place.”

He confirmed: “The recent amendments of labour legislations concerning the labour market were inspired by the (UAE leadership’s) keen interest to provide more guarantees to both workers and employers, to help in job stability, and to increase productivity.”

Ghobash believed that the realisation of sustainable development is part and parcel of enhancement of national human capital, in addition to opening all avenues for this human capital to participate in various economic activities. These efforts would enhance the advanced positions attained by the UAE, according to the

UAE workforce productivity vis-a-vis working hours is among the top ten global competitive report.

New procedures The Ministry of Labour recently announced a series of new procedures concerning the labour market and the organisation of its contractual relationships, which were passed within a comprehensive policy aimed at providing more stability and flexibility to these relationships.

The Wage Protection System, WPS, which has been in implementation since September 2009, is considered as one of the major components of the aforementioned policies, as it protects workers’ rights to receive salaries on time and without any undue deductions, and it also has positive implications on the employers.

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The advanced positions attained by the UAE in the area of labour market efficiency reflects the political leadership’s vision for providing a sustainable and stable labour market based on the realisation of a balanced relationship between the rights and responsibilities of the bilateral production process i.e. workers and employers.”

— Saqr bin Ghobash, UAE Minister of Labour

KHALEEJ TIMES ADVERTISING SUPPLEMENT SUNDAY, JULY 31, 2011

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UAE ranks fifth in labour market efficiency Continued from page 1

The guidelines for labour housing, approved by the UAE cabinet last year, is also considered as an important initiative, aimed at providing protection for workers, through offering a suitable lodging according to international standards that guarantees health and occupational

safety. The prohibition of work in the afternoon during summer months has in turn helped in providing more protection to workers and enhanced productivity. The Ministry of Labour shall continue its efforts to provide more legislations and amendments, aimed at labour market reform.

What is WPS? Wage Protection System (WPS) is an electronic salary transfer system that allows institutions to pay workers’ wages via banks, bureaux de change, and financial institutions approved and authorised to provide the service.

The system, developed by the Central Bank of the UAE, allows the Ministry of Labour to create a database that records wage payments in the private sector to guarantee the timely and full payment of agreed-upon wages. The WPS covers all institutions registered with the Ministry across all sectors and industries and will benefit different categories of labour.

Leading position The WPS reflects the UAE’s leading position in the region, and will increasingly project the country as a model worth emulating in the following areas: • Reiterating commitment to protect workers’ wages • Providing innovative solutions that help employers safeguard their own interests and reduce the time and effort needed to pay workers’ wages • Taking serious steps to improve job security in order to strengthen work relationships in the UAE and safeguard the rights of all parties concerned • Entrenching transparency and competitiveness • Ensuring that the UAE Ministry of Labour is regularly and constantly updated on wages data in the private sector in order to guarantee that employers fulfil their salary obligations • Taking protective and proactive measures to reduce labour disputes pertaining to wages.

Partners WPS targets the following parties from the Ministry partners: Workers: Each and every individual who works in the private sector in return for agreed-upon wages and who has a labour card issued by the Ministry

Employers: Whoever owns a company or institution registered with the Ministry and hires one or more workers in return for agreed-upon wages Banks: The financial institution which the employer has a bank account with, that is used to transfer the wages amount through WPS to the appointed agent to distribute to the labourers Agent: Any bank, bureau de change, or financial institution approved and authorised by the Central Bank of the UAE to offer wages payment services via WPS. The Central Bank of the UAE will issue a regularly updated list showing names of approved and authorised agents.

Joining WPS Joining WPS requires that: • The company has to be registered with the Ministry • The company should have a bank account with one of the banks operating in the UAE • The company should enter into a contract with any bank, bureau de change or financial institution approved and authorised by the Central Bank of the UAE to provide the service. The two parties shall agree on any service fees and charges • Workers’ wages will be transferred via WPS by the deadlines specified in the Ministerial Resolution No. 788 of 2009 • The institution will have to transfer workers’ wages via WPS within two weeks of their due date, or on the dates specified in the work contract if wages are paid more frequently than monthly • The employer will be responsible for all expenses incurred upon joining WPS, including bank fees, service provider charges, and all other costs. Employers are not allowed to share any costs with workers by any means, including deducting from their wages, directly or indirectly.

Mechanism The WPS applying mechanism is as follows: • The company shall open an account with one of the banks operating in the country, in case it doesn’t have one upon joining the WPS system

• The company shall enter into contract with a WPS agent that is approved and authorised by the Central Bank of the UAE to provide this service, be it a bank, bureau de change, or a financial institution • The employer shall issue instructions to its bank to transfer wages to workers. Instructions shall be accompanied by a detailed wages list and a copy of the list shall be sent to the agent • The WPS will send workers’ details and wages as well as the salary transfer instructions electronically to the Central Bank of the UAE, which will then forward those details to the Ministry of Labour’s database in order to make sure that the details received correspond with those registered with the Ministry • The WPS will send the approved information to the appointed agent in order to start paying the wages.

Consequences The consequences of failing to join WPS are: • Institutions failing to transfer workers’ wages by the deadlines specified will be denied the right to have new work permits. This ban will only be lifted in the month following the transfer of workers’ wages in full • Institutions that delay wages’ payment more than one month of the due date will be denied the right to have new work permits, along with all institutions owned by the owner of the violating institution, and to refer all those responsible for the violation to the court, in accordance with Ministerial Resolution No. 788 of 2009.

Inquiries For inquiries about ways of joining WPS: Employers can call the Ministry of Labour toll-free number 800-665 or send an email to: wps@mol. gov.ae.

Banks, bureaux de change and financial institutions providing the service can write to the Central Bank of the UAE on the email address: wps@cbuae.gov.ae — WAM

LULU INTERNATIONAL EXCHANGE

Customer-oriented approach Lulu International Exchange is marching ahead with ‘My Pay’ the WPS Payroll Solution Lulu International Exchange, one of UAE’s leading exchange houses, has within a short span of time, moved several paces in the remittance and payment solution market. This impressive growth underlines its intent to make convenience and customer care its strength, and reiterates Lulu Group’s commitment to provide the best service in the industry.

Yusuffali MA, the main force behind Lulu, said: “We are driven to serve our customers who seek a onestop shopping experience for all their needs, including the financial service.

In a span of less than two years, Lulu International Exchange demonstrated its aim to follow a path of positive growth. The addition of new branches to augment the market demand, are seen as moves that reflect the customer-oriented approach to business in the country. It adds value to the service ambit that has customer satisfaction at its core.

“With the economy geared to meet the increasing demands of a young and discerning populace, such moves in the market bring about a freshness

that is required to keep the interests of customers alive. Added to that is the positive business mood within the country and the confidence the market has always infused,” explained Yusuffali MA. Said Adeeb Ahamed, CEO of Lulu International Exchange: “In a short span of time the company has captured a large chunk of the payroll management service with its innovative products — ‘My Card’, in association with NBAD. The brand loyalty of Lulu and NBAD has definitely helped to garner a bigger market share of this sector. The unique features of ‘My Card’ have been a big hit with employees as well as the management. It has also added more value to the large em-

ployee base of this country. It is our continuous endeavour to keep adding new facilities and values to ‘My Card’. Lulu International Exchange is extremely customer-focused. With greater emphasis on quality, service and technology we have been able to serve our clientele better.”

Lulu International Exchange has spread its wings to other GCC countries, India and soon it will enter the Far East and is sure to become one of the key players in the retail financial service sector.

With a commitment to responsible corporate governance, the company aims to be the most preferred destination for retail and corporate financial services.

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Integrated payout anywhere mechanism Company to focus on opening branches in industrial areas, labour camps and workers’ villages

The Wage Protection System introduced by the UAE government has been one of the major milestones in the lives of the large expatriate community in the country.

Banks, exchange houses and other authorised agents actively took

part in the system to make it a big success.

Ahalia Money Exchange Bureau, the popular exchange house among the Asian expatriate community in the UAE, has successfully developed and launched its own corporate payroll solution in line with the requirements of the Ministry of Labour and UAE Central Bank.

Named the “Ahalia Payment System” (APS), it is an integrated anywhere payout mechanism catering to a large number of companies in the UAE. Ahalia’s exclusive department for wage payment works all seven days both in Abu Dhabi and Dubai sectors. APS call centres are

equipped to give on-time status updates, complaint redressals and other information online. Since it is an integrated web-based solution, employees can collect their salaries from any of Ahalia Exchange’s 24 branches, conveniently located in different emirates of the country.

Ahalia Exchange provides extensive remittance services for the employees along with their payroll package. A correspondent network of more than 70 banks in different countries makes it easy for the employees to send a part of their salary at the time of salary pick-up.

The company has a strong network in countries like India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nepal and the Philip-

With you, for your payroll solution UBL launches its WPS compliant WIZ Payroll Solution

United Bank Ltd, popularly known as UBL, started its operations on November 7, 1959. It has from the beginning been recognised as a modern progressive bank and has a history of innovation and setting new trends. Privatised in October 2002, the bank is owned by a consortium of the Abu Dhabi Group and Bestway Group of the UK. His Highness Shaikh Nahayan Mabarak Al Nahayan, UAE’s Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research, is the Chairman and Sir Mohammed Anwar Pervez OBE, is the Deputy Chairman of the bank.

Over the last 51 years, the bank’s global network has grown to over 1,100 branches, representative offices, subsidiaries and associate companies across the UAE, Bahrain, Qatar, Yemen, Oman, the US, the UK, Iran, China, Kazakhstan, Switzerland and Pakistan.

UBL has the privilege of being among the pioneers of international banking in the Middle East region, being the second international bank to commence operations in the emirate of Abu Dhabi, where it opened its first international branch in July, 1967. The bank has played its due role in promoting local businesses in international markets and thereby contributing to the country’s growth and prosperity.

UBL launched its WPS-complaint payroll solution offering numerous benefits to both companies and their employees with unique smart chip card technology, which offers security and flexibility for global usage to all the cardholders. The UBL WIZ payroll Visa card can be used at over 32 million POS/ATMs/Internet merchant outlets internationally.

Benefits for company: • Full compliance with the WPS initiative of the UAE Ministry of Labour and UAE Central Bank • Automated salary payment with a convenient solution • Salary disbursement to employees on time without cash handling • More security for employees with a smart chip card • Payroll card acceptance on ATMs across the UAE Switch Network, GCC Switch Network and Visa Network (POS and ATM) worldwide • Dedicated Relationship Officer for the company Benefits for employees: • The freedom of accessing funds anywhere, any time through a chip-enabled Visa Debit Card • WIZ Payroll card can be used at over one million ATMs and 32 million Visa retail outlets across the globe • There is no minimum balance requirement • There are no queues or other hassles • Smart chip technology offers greater security while transacting

• Free SMS transaction alerts • Transfer of funds through standing order • Free home remittances to Pakistan without visiting any branch in the UAE During its 44-year-long presence in the UAE, the bank has successfully partnered with the top business houses, and has a diversified exposure across a broad spectrum of industries. The corporate bank will remain an active player in the UAE economy, continuing its customer-centric approach, while the retail bank will maintain its focus on providing a full suite of products and services including personal loans, credit cards, bancassurance, safe deposit lockers, netbanking, payroll solution, several investment options in Pakistan (UBL Fund Manager), non-resident accounts and special convertible rupee accounts in Pakistan (Pakistan Investment Bonds, T-Bills) through its showroom branches.

UBL continues to invest in its people, technology, infrastructure and research led by its vision to be a world-class bank dedicated to excellence and to surpass the highest expectations of its customers and stakeholders. The bank has been actively pursuing its corporate social responsibility, and it continues to participate in, sponsor and organise different sporting and other community events, in association with government departments, NGOs and other institutions.

UBL’s underlying optimism in the UAE as a country with a vibrant economy and visionary leadership will continue to propel the bank in its journey with vigour, momentum and enthusiasm.

pines from where the larger population of expatriate workers comes.

It is in view of the Wage Protection System and the need for reaching out to the employees, that the company is presently focusing on opening branches in industrial areas, labour camps and workers’ villages. The recent branches of Ahalia Exchange were opened in Mussafah Al Jeemi workers’ village, Mussafah ICAD City and Dubai Investment Park. In

its constant endeavour to fulfil the commitment to workers, the next scheduled branches of Ahalia will be operative in the month of August in Al Raha village Mussafah and Sharjah Al Nahda.

With 24 branches, across the UAE and with a transparent, fool-proof payment mechanism in operation, Ahalia Money Exchange Bureau is one of the forerunners in the Wage Protection System.

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Dynamic product Mypay is one product that combines various other products to efficiently provide access to process all the financial needs of an individual or a corporate entity

WPS end-to-end solution

Mypay is among the most ad-

vanced salary payment solutions that conform to WPS. This sophisticated system makes provisions for the customer to comply with the norms of WPS through various flexible methods. The service includes everything from issuance of RATIBI international debit cards to even door-to-door services.

Having been in existence for more than four years this payments solution makes optimal use of resources and offers its services after much re-

Abdelhamid Ghazouani EVP, Group Head — Operations, Organisation & IT

UAB offers its corporate customers a full-fledged and secured solution to manage their payroll United Arab Bank, or UAB, has implemented

a Wage Protection System (WPS) solution that provides complete system functionality, enabling its customers to participate in the UAE Central Bank’s WPS, in a simple but effective manner.

UAB application is an end-to-end WPS solution offering a self-service portal for corporate customers to manage their payroll files in an easy and secure way and thus eliminate frustrating delays and costly errors.

Corporate customers of United Arab Bank use the 24/7 WPS self-service online portal to import simple Excel files, validate data, authorise and submit files to the WPS bank solution. Customers can also monitor their transactions status online. UAB system is offering also e-mail alerts to inform cus-

tomers of any error or file rejection. These features have significantly reduced the process complexity for UAB customers and given them a user friendly and secured WPS tool.

UAB WPS system has reduced the workload for bulk salary processing, eliminated stigmatically the input and processing errors and increased staff efficiency and processing turnaround time (TAT) by automating the full process.

Salary Card

To help its valued customers, United Arab Bank also has introduced an innovative product “UAB Salary Card”. This product is allowing low salaried employees to enjoy the facility of having an ATM card that can be used anywhere in the UAE. UAB is also offering its corporate customers, through its online WPS portal, an option to request Salary Cards for their employees.

With its online WPS solution and Salary Card product, UAB is offering its corporate customers a full-fledged and secured solution to manage their payroll simply, efficiently, 24/7 and from anywhere in the world without being requested to visit the bank’s branches.

search. As a result clients receive a risk-free service.

On April 10, 2011 Wall Street entered into a tie-up with UAE’s No. 1 bank, National Bank of Abu Dhabi (NBAD). This important step has helped Wall Street to broaden the range of services it offers. With Mypay it has focused on customers to provide them the right choice to access their salaries through 24 Wall Street branches and more than 450 ATMs of NBAD free-of-charge. The card’s collaboration with the VISA platform makes it an international debit card.

One more feature is the Mypay Online Interface that enables corporate users to entirely manage and administer the payroll functions of their company or a group of companies by creating multiple sub-users controlled by the main user. This system allows the user to create, upload or even amend its employee database at will. It can also be used to upload salary information file (SIF)

online.

Thus a corporate entity can avoid all the hassles like submitting manual instructions or sending instructions via email, all of which involve a huge risk. Funds can be transferred using the online transfer link from the customer’s bank, whereas all SIF can be transmitted using the safe Mypay Online Interface by operating it from the company’s office. Other features include the generation of monthly salary reports, employeewise payment reports and various other reports in a format as stipulated by the Ministry of Labour.

Integrating the RATIBI ATM cards with Wall Street Gold card helps customers to avail all other Wall Street services such as bank transfer and cash transfer with unique exchange rates.

Thus it can be said that this is one product that combines various other products to efficiently provide access to process all the financial needs of an individual or a corporate entity.

Emirates International Exchange

e-Pay offers user-friendly key to wage payment With e-Pay employees can withdraw their salary or remit directly to their beneficiaries Emirates International Exchange, a division of Shattaf

Group of companies and a reliable remittance and foreign exchange company, has launched a fully-compliant Wage Protection System (WPS) called e-Pay. The launching of e-Pay in 2009 was part of the aggressive expansion of services of Emirates International Exchange and in line with the Central Bank of the UAE and the Ministry of Labour’s commitment to strengthen and protect the wage welfare of its more than four million workers.

With e-Pay, employers are given the

benefit of easy and user-friendly solution in processing employees’ salaries with less paper work and minimal payroll procedures, and it helps in cutting down on cash disbursal of salaries, while giving the employees the guarantee of timely and full payment of agreed wages and freedom to withdraw their salary or remit directly to their beneficiaries.

Humaid Shattaf, Chairman of Emirates International Exchange, said: “This initiative of the Central Bank of the UAE and the Ministry of Labour in safeguarding workers’ salaries via transfers through selected state financial institutions is an excellent step towards enhancement of labour relations within the corporate world.

Apart from that Emirates International Exchange’s advocacy and commitment to service excellence under their guidance has been a learning experi-

ence to all of us. Today, e-Pay is a leading name in the corporate world. We express our gratitude to thousands of companies who believed and trusted us.”

The e-Pay payroll solution assures its partnering employers efficiency, confidentiality, transparency, advanced technological procedures and easy pay-out at Emirates International Exchange branches and labour camps.

The e-Pay solution provides easy access to salaries across all 17 Emirates International Exchange branches, with the added facility to disburse salaries at various work sites and camps for the employees’ convenience.

Emirates International Exchange also has a dedicated service desk for ePay customers to offer them guidance and information for the processing of WPS payments.

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Call Toll-free: 800 22 11or visit any NBAD branch

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Enhancing standards of service

Lloyds TSB has developed its own in-house processes and procedures to support WPS and to maximise the benefits of the system

Lloyds TSB in the Middle East is part of Lloyds banking group, one of the largest and most successful banking groups in the world. Lloyds TSB has been a leading bank in Dubai for over 30 years.

Its banking services include personal banking, commercial banking, corporate banking, offshore banking, treasury services and much more.

In addition to its market leading suite of products such as car loans, credit cards, personal and commercial loans, current and savings accounts, Lloyds TSB Middle East also offers easy accessibility to telephone banking and secure internet banking 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Following are the excerpts from an exclusive interview with Richard Musty, Managing Director, Lloyds TSB in the Middle East.

What do you understand as the pur-

pose of the introduction of the Wages Protection Scheme (WPS)?

I believe that the UAE government’s principal aim for introducing WPS was to achieve full transparency in salary payment processes. This was in an effort both to protect workers’ right and also to protect employers from being unduly penalised by excessive charges when processing salaries.

What is your view on WPS and do you think it has achieved its goals?

In my view, WPS has certainly achieved what it set out to do, and also delivered a host of other benefits. Before WPS was introduced salary processing was a manually intensive process meaning that the risk of human error or inaccuracies was higher. With WPS the salary payment process is fully automated making it more efficient and secure than before, with a

reduced risk of errors. In essence, banks now have the ability to offer their customers an enhanced level of service quality and efficiency.

When did Lloyds TSB Middle East start using WPS? The UAE government announced the mandatory implementation of WPS in May 2009; we made our first payment via WPS in September 2009 as part of the first wave of banks to do so.

How has WPS impacted the service that you offer to your customers?

At Lloyds TSB in the Middle East we pride ourselves on delivering a high-quality level of service to our customers and we continuously seek opportunities for future improvement. WPS has allowed us to further enhance our high standards of service and deliver an exceptional banking experi-

ence to all of our commercial and corporate banking customers. Furthermore, workers’ salaries are credited to their accounts held with us within minutes of us receiving the funds.

Our commercial and corporate banking customers are now able to upload salary files via our secure internet banking system with just a couple of clicks and, provided the files are received before 11.30am, the payments will be processed on the same day.

We have also developed our own inhouse processes and procedures to support WPS and to maximise the benefits of the system. We have trained ‘subject matter experts’ who are able to support our customers in setting up and embedding their own WPS systems. We have also produced a series of comprehensive user guides to further support our customers with the system.

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Bank of Baroda

Lari Exchange

Unmatched assurance At Lari Exchange ATMs employees can withdraw their salary up to the denomination of Dh10 Lari Exchange, one of the oldest exchange houses in the UAE, has been providing financial services for more than 40 years. Using cutting-edge technologies, Lari Exchange gives 100 per cent assurance to its customers when it comes to providing a combination of friendly, helpful and professional services.

Affiliated with some of the top names in the UAE and internationally, the company has continued to grow by making customer service one of its top priorities.

Lari Exchange WPS Service: Lari Exchange provides the corporate sector with the salary disbursement service through the LAREX Salary Card, an electronic card system for the payment of workers’ salaries. In this system, the employees’ salary is uploaded through the WPS after which the employees can withdraw their salary using several delivery channels: ATM network: At Lari Exchange ATM, employees can withdraw salary up to the denomination of Dh10. With the installation of ATMs in various labour camps and shopping malls, salaries are now accessible even in remote locations that have a low number of employees.

POS terminal network: Lari Exchange disburses sal-

ary through POS terminals with a team of well-trained staff in labour camps and workplaces.

Employees can withdraw their salary broken into fils at POS terminals.

Corporate companies can benefit greatly using the Lari Exchange WPS service: • Ideal payroll solution to comply with WPS • Simple registration process and immediate implementation of the WPS service with unlimited capacity • Compressive, easy-to-use and cost-effective salary disbursement through LAREX card • Eliminate cost and inconvenience of disbursing salaries by cash or cheques to employees • Payment to employees at off-site locations • Assistance in generating

the SIF file through our branches and more convenient ways to transfer the WPS funds • SMS/email alert to update the status of WPS process Employees also enjoy the WPS service with several advantages: • Salary is secure and safe in LAREX card and multiple withdrawal of salary is possible • SMS notification is sent for every transaction through LAREX card • No minimum balance maintenance and monthly maintenance cost • Special promotions and wide range of remittance services to anywhere in the world • Bill payment, credit card payment services

Habib Bank Limited

Real account with full banking access HBL focuses on the blue-collared segment of the labour force and it was one of the first banks to become WPS-compliant Habib Bank Limited (HBL) is the largest private sector bank in Pakistan with over 1,400 branches and it has been operating in the UAE since 1967 with a full commercial banking licence.

HBL’s traditional commercial banking model has enabled it to strengthen its position in the market and its progress has continued unabated despite the recent global financial crisis.

The bank’s domestic market share is over 40 per cent and it continues to dominate the commercial banking sector with a major market

share of $1.2 billion (Dh4.4 billion) in home remittances to Pakistan. HBL is one of the leading banks in the market serving the blue-collared segment as Pakistani labour has been a dominant force and a significant contributor to the UAE economy. HBL was the second foreign bank to commence its operations in the UAE in 1967.

HBL has opened real operating accounts for labourers.

These accounts operate and function like any other account as required by the true spirit of the law. Most other operators are servicing the segment through virtual accounts connected to the GCC switch through a segregated bin.

No doubt, WPS is an outstanding initiative of the UAE government and its volumes speak of how highly organised and regulated the UAE market has become.

HBL focuses on the blue-col-

lared segment of the labour force and it was one of the first banks to become WPScompliant. The new account opening process undergoes a rigorous AML review to ensure that all accounts opened are in full compliance with the law. Furthermore the blue-collared workers have full access to all other banking products and services.

Remitters to Pakistan enjoy unmatched remittance service, which provides realtime credit to beneficiaries followed by an “SMS” confirmation with the following distinct advantages: • Immediate access to funds • No hassle of cheque encashment and carrying cash • Cash can be withdrawn any time from any ATM 24x7 • Fast, convenient and instant home remittance facility

Aman Aziz Siddiqui

Regional General Manager – Gulf

• Personalised services through dedicated staff • Electronic payroll solution.

As a Ramadan promotion HBL is offering: • Free issuance of labour guarantee • No setup charge for WPS accounts till December 2011 • Free debit card for companies having more than 500 employees.

With you, For your payroll solution

For information please call any of the following branches :

600 533335

Smart payroll is the smartest salary payment answer Bank of Baroda not only plays the role of a bank for processing salary files, but also offers salary disbursing facilities Bank of Baroda, India’s international bank, has emerged as the third largest bank in India. The bank has over 3,400+ interconnected branches in India and 86 overseas offices in 26 countries to serve a customer base of more than 39 million customers.

In the UAE, Bank of Baroda has been present for the last 37 years.

It is the only Indian bank in the UAE offering the entire range of products and services through its six branches (Bur Dubai, Deira, Abu Dhabi, Shajrah, Ras Al Khaimah, Al Ain) and seven customer service centres (Jebel Ali, Mussafah, Qusais, RAKIA, Shaikh Zayed Road, Karama, National Paints).

The bank is planning to open five more customer service centres at Kalba (near Fujairah) and Hamriya (near Ajman) and other strategic locations.

The bank is highly focused on its customer segments, specially retail, and has a bouquet of products to offer deposits at competitive rates, car loans, mortgage loans, personal loans, NRI services and remittances to India.

The bank has also been very active in payment of wages under the Wages Protection System (WPS) through its unique product “BOB Smart Payroll.” Bank of Baroda not only plays the role of a bank for processing salary files, but also offers salary disbursing facilities.

Some of the benefits of BOB Smart Payroll are: • All the three key processes in-

Ashok Gupta

volved in WPS, viz, funding of wages, payment of wages, refunds and settlements are covered • Quick and efficient disbursal of salaries to a large number of employees • Dedicated relationship managers • Current account with multiple benefits • Savings account with multiple benefits and end-to-end solutions for employees including opening of NRE accounts in the UAE itself and other related NRI services • Instant online remittance to India on Fridays also • Free instant online remittance to India on Friday in case the account in the UAE and India are with Bank of Baroda • Extensive delivery channels — ATMs, tele-banking and internet banking • Loan facilities for employees: salary-linked loans, vehicle loans, mortgage loans and loans for purchase of house in India • Total confidentiality of data • Highly secured disbursal process • Less paperwork and minimal documentation procedures • Flexibility of adding new employees in the payroll with minimal procedures • End-to-end solution for employees: Through the bank’s remittance facilities, funds can be transferred easily to the home country.

With so many benefits available to both the employers and the employees, it is not surprising that a large number of corporate entities pay their salaries through BOB Smart Payroll, which figures among the top three in the UAE for the number of distinct employers serviced.

Small and medium enterprises (SMEs), corporates and large corporates also form very important segments. The bank has teams of professionals, who exclusively look after each segment through specialised outfits like SME Loan Factory, Corporate Banking Unit, Syndication Centre, Centralised Trade Finance, State-of-the-Art Treasury Operations etc.

The bank is working with a vision of becoming the “Most Preferred Bank” in the UAE. To accomplish it, there is a continuous introduction of innovative/new products and services. Starting banking services on Friday, extending banking operations from 8am to 8pm, receiving remittance instructions through fax, and online internet banking are some of the services introduced to provide further convenience to customers. Instant online remittance service to over 3400+ interconnected branches of Bank of Baroda and remittance to over 60,000 branches of other banks even on Fridays, is another important service provided by the bank.

Bank of Baroda has many other initiatives lined up, including Mobile Customer Service Centre (bank literally coming to your doorstep), Biometric ATM, remittance and bill payment through ATM/ Internet Banking/ SMS, increasing number of ATMs to 40 with more focus on full functional ATMs (cheque and cash can be deposited in ATMs). This will offer a further edge to the bank and will help it to become the “Bank of First Choice” for a larger number of customers.

In addition to the UAE, the bank has a presence in Oman and Bahrain. It is also planning to start operations in Kuwait, Qatar and Saudi Arabia, thereby making it the only Indian bank offering services in all GCC countries.

KHALEEJ TIMES ADVERTISING SUPPLEMENT SUNDAY, JULY 31, 2011

KHALEEJ TIMES ADVERTISING SUPPLEMENT SUNDAY, JULY 31, 2011

VIII

Al Ansari Exchange

Hassle-free disbursal for workers PayPlus is a complete payroll solution from Al Ansari Exchange

Like all other premium services Al

Ansari Exchange takes pride in introducing “PayPlus”, the wage protection solution that provides companies with an easy and hassle-free salary disbursal among workers.

Its customised “PayPlus” solution is safe, reliable and saves time for processing employees’ salaries as per the Central Bank of the UAE and Ministry of Labour requirements according to the UAE Wages Protection System.

With more than 100 branches conveniently located across the UAE and a dedicated team for onsite disbursals, Al Ansari Exchange ensures a superior solution that delivers maximum quality, efficiency and value for its customers.

The exchange also introduced the stateof-the-art “Mobile Branch”, its unique concept that was conceived to address the needs of clients, especially those residing

secure services.

The procedure for complying with WPS is made simple through Al Ansari Exchange’s systems. Its representatives are always at hand to help companies through the procedure, starting from registration to salary payment to the company’s employees.

in labour accommodations in the UAE, for a secure facility that will allow them a more convenient way to receive their salaries, and to serve customers in remote locations. The Mobile Branch is equipped with state-ofthe-art technology such as real-time, 24/7 wireless connection with the head office and local authorities providing quick and

Why PayPlus?

• 100 per cent WPS compliant • Largest network of branches in the UAE • Convenience: The service can be availed from conveniently located branches of Al Ansari Exchange across the UAE • Onsite disbursal facilities • Assistance of multi-cultural staff highlytrained and dedicated for WPS • Highly flexible payroll processing • Highly secure disbursal processes • Easy, reliable and fast worldwide remittance services while collecting the salary

NATIONAL BANK OF ABU DHABI

Low-cost remittance International remittances done through the Arrow service or NBAD Mobile App will be charged only Dh1 for four months In coordination with MoneyGram, on June 26, 2011 for four months, NBAD launched a four-month promotion on international remittances done through the Arrow service or NBAD Mobile App. All Arrow registered customers will be able to remit money internationally to over 233,000 MoneyGram locations in 191 countries worldwide for a fee of only Dh1.

NBAD Mobile App NBAD Mobile App is a menu-driven, userfriendly solution for managing and tracking finances while customers are on the go. It offers our esteemed customers safe, easy, fast and complete simple on touch access to the Arrow Service, and therefore access to their bank or prepaid card accounts on several types of smart phones: Blackberry, iPhone and Android enabled devices.

The service allows NBAD account holders and prepaid cardholders 24/7 access to their accounts through their smart phones from any GPRS/3G/Wi-Fi network, anywhere in the world.

The bank’s account and prepaid card-

holders have access to features that include: • Account or prepaid card balance inquiry • Money transfers domestically to another person, or to oneself, where money can be withdrawn from any NBAD ATM within 24 hours using a pin received through SMS • Sending money internationally to anyone worldwide where receivers can withdraw the money from any of the 233,000 MoneyGram agents located in 191 countries within 10 minutes • Bill payments to Etisalat, utility companies and American Community School; and donations to Red Crescent Society and others • View transactions history.

Additionally, customers will not need to memorise SMS syntaxes as required in conventional SMS banking solution, the NBAD Mobile App is a user-friendly, secure solution, for managing and tracking bank accounts or prepaid card accounts.

What is more?

Anyone holding a compatible mobile device can download and access the application; downloading NBAD Mobile App is simple Registration for Arrow and NBAD Mobile App is free.

The Arrow Service NBAD is always striving to provide cut-

Redha Al Ansari Exchange Limited period offer Send an international remittance to any MoneyGram location in 190 countries for a fee of only AED 1 *. *Terms and conditions apply.

ting-edge market leading solutions. NBAD Arrow is one of the bank’s payment channels; a fast and reliable service to send money using SMS, specially catered to NBAD account holders and prepaid card holders; including Ratibi card holders.

Through Arrow, with a simple SMS message the customer can: • Send international remittances through MoneyGram to their loved ones 24hours/ seven days a week, where the receiver can withdraw cash at over 233,000 locations, spread in 191 countries within 10 minutes from receiving a reference number provided by MoneyGram* • Send money to another Arrow user, where money will be instantly credited to the receiver’s account • Send money to a Non Arrow User where cash is withdrawn from any NBAD ATM card-less using a pin code received by SMS • Check their account or prepaid card balance • Bill payments to Etisalat, utility companies and American Community School; and donations to Red Crescent Society and others. * Rates applied are competitive to exchange house prices. More information can be obtained at https://arrow.nbad.com

Popular custom-made payroll solution Redha Al Ansari Exchange’s custom-made payroll solution branded YellowPay has been designed to cater to every corporate/business entity in the UAE Redha Al Ansari Exchange (RAE) was one of the first WPS agents to be approved by the Central Bank of the UAE. RAE’s WPS service is branded as “YellowPay”. This is a custom-made payroll solution for every corporate/ business entity. YellowPay is the most popular payroll solution among the corporates and business owners in the UAE. RAE has dedicated teams to disburse the salaries at the corporate premises or any of its branch networks. Its valuable customers in the WPS process made YellowPay, a great success.

YellowPay is driven by three success factors: • A dedicated and professionally trained team • Latest infrastructure support • Simple and secure processes to ensure timely payment of wages.

Redha Al Ansari Exchange has a strong presence in the UAE with 28 conveniently located branches. RAE, one of the leading groups in the bank note business in the Middle East, has an extensive correspondent network of over 50 financial institutions throughout the world. RAE also has tie-ups with major banks in the UAE for their credit card payments, du telephone bill payments, National Bonds and Eztop mobile top-ups.

RAE is the only exchange which has been authorised to sell and recharge RTA Nol cards.

Salik recharge cards are also available in RAE branches. RAE’s management continually strives to offer the customer faster and more efficient services by introducing innovative technology.