Dubai flexible working offers remote, hybrid and flexible hours to 24,000 employees

More than 24,000 Dubai Government employees across 49 entities participated in the emirate’s Our Flexible Summer 2026 initiative, with flexible start and finish times emerging as the most widely adopted arrangement.

According to results released by the Dubai Government Human Resources Department (DGHR), flexible start and end times accounted for 54 per cent of all arrangements adopted during the programme. Remote and hybrid working were the next most commonly used options, while other approved flexible arrangements made up the remainder.

The initiative was designed to allow government entities to adopt flexible working models according to their operational requirements, while maintaining service continuity and performance.

The latest results also point to high levels of organisational readiness and employee compliance. Some 99 per cent of participating government entities reported that they had raised employee awareness around working mechanisms, communication protocols and service delivery requirements. Meanwhile, 95 per cent of employees participating in the initiative complied with the flexible arrangements approved by their respective entities.

DGHR said the approach varied across sectors. Service-oriented entities focused on maintaining service readiness and customer satisfaction, while legal and institutional workplaces placed greater emphasis on clear responsibilities and workplace discipline. Fast-paced sectors, meanwhile, focused on managing priorities and strengthening teams’ ability to adapt.

Abdullah Ali bin Zayed Al Falasi, Director General of DGHR, said the initiative demonstrated the value of work practices that create greater value for both employees and government entities.

He said the progress made through the different phases provides a foundation to build on successful experiences, advance ways of working and strengthen government entities’ ability to achieve their objectives efficiently.

Our Flexible Summer began as a pilot in 2024 involving 21 government entities. DGHR said the initial programme produced positive results in productivity and workplace quality, with employee satisfaction and happiness reaching approximately 98 per cent.

The initiative was subsequently expanded across Dubai Government entities in 2025 and 2026, giving the government a broader base of data and implementation experience.

Azza Al Marzooqi, Director of the Human Resources Department at Dubai Municipality, said the programme allowed government entities to test flexible work models suited to their responsibilities while maintaining efficiency, business continuity and service quality.

The latest findings will now be used by DGHR to identify the practices and factors that contributed to successful implementation and inform the next phase of Dubai Government’s flexible working approach.

For Nada Al Marri, Director of the Human Resources Department at the Dubai Department of Economy and Tourism, the experience also showed that flexibility can support performance when combined with accountability and a focus on results.

The findings come as employers and governments globally continue to test how flexible work can be balanced with operational requirements, service delivery and employee experience. In Dubai’s government sector, the latest results suggest that flexibility does not necessarily mean a single work model, but rather giving entities the scope to adapt working arrangements to the nature of their operations.