10 Mar 2013 12:06
Etihad Airways has welcomed more than 260 Emirati nationals to its workforce through the Absher initiative, since its launch in June 2012.
Etihad Airways has welcomed more than 260
Emirati nationals to its workforce through the Absher initiative, since its
launch in June 2012.
The Absher initiative was conceived by the President
of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), His Highness Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al
Nahyan, to support Emiratisation and create new jobs for skilled Emiratis in
the UAE labour market.
To ensure implementation of the Absher initiative is
in line with HH the UAE President’s vision, His Highness Sheikh Mansour bin
Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Presidential Affairs,
monitors developments closely.
Etihad Airways is renowned as one of the
country’s leading employers and has been widely praised for its Emiratisation recruitment strategy.
The strategy offers Emiratis
exciting and world-class training, in addition to highly attractive career
prospects, across the global business. Roles are diverse, including graduate
managers, cadet pilots, technical engineers, sales managers, guest service
agents, contact centre agents and airport operations managers.
As a result, Emiratis now comprise
22.4 per cent of Etihad Airways’ core workforce, with more than 1,250 UAE
nationals employed across the airline’s seven divisions.
In line with the Memorandum of
Understanding (MoU) signed in June 2012 with the Ministry of Presidential
Affairs, Etihad Airways hopes to recruit an additional 1500 Emirati citizens to
its global team over the next five years.
James Hogan, Etihad Airways’ President and Chief
Executive, said: “As the national airline of the United Arab Emirates, we are
committed to employing and empowering Emiratis to play an even greater role in
our world-class business.
“Our mandate includes introducing new opportunities in
the UAE aviation sector for Emiratis, specifically in Abu Dhabi. We have
made huge strides, been widely praised for our efforts, and are looking forward
to supporting ever more UAE nationals across the business.”
In March 2011, Etihad Airways received a distinguished
honoree award from the UAE Ministry of Presidential Affairs. The recognition
was awarded for the establishment of the Etihad Airways Call Centre at Al Ain,
as a unique innovation and achievement in supporting the economic empowerment
and inclusion of UAE women in the community.
Mona Walid, Vice President Talent Acquisition, Etihad
Airways, said: “We are proud to take Emiratisation in the work place to new
heights. Our innovative training courses and programmes are designed to ensure
UAE nationals can take on roles in all aspects of the airline’s operation.
“The extensive training programs involve a mixture of
classroom learning and hands-on experience. Emiratis spend time in a
variety of Etihad departments finding out about all aspects of the airline’s
business, including operations, customer service, sales and marketing,
reservations, contact centres, pricing and ticketing, network and schedule
planning, finance and human resources, ” she said.
More than 35 UAE nationals, who started their careers
in one of Etihad Airways’ Emiratisation programs, took up positions at the
airline’s offices and airport destinations across the world.
These positions include sales, finance and airport
manager roles in Australia, Germany, Indonesia, Ireland, Japan, Korea, Morocco,
Switzerland, the US, and the United Kingdom.
Etihad Airways is also working closely with the Abu
Dhabi Tawteen Council, HCT, Zayed University, Abu Dhabi University, and other
organisations to improve its ability to recruit nationals within the
airline’s recruitment strategy and programs, which have achieved great success
since being launched in 2007.
The airline recently signed an MOU with with Ministry of
Higher Education and Scientific Research with the aim of hiring our UAE
national workforce studying abroad, helping them build their career paths in
the aviation industry.
In recognition of Etihad Airways’ world class
Emiratisation programmes that were launched in 2007, the airline was awarded
“Best Nationalisation Friendly Initiative” in 2011 at the GCC HR Excellence
Awards. In 2012, the airline received the Middle East HR Excellence Awards for
‘Recruitment Programme of the Year’ and ‘HR Initiative of the Year’.
“Within six years of initiating Emiratisation
programmes, Etihad Airways’ success was recognised by prestigious international
organisations. These remarkable achievements reflect our commitment to attract,
develop and, more importantly retain, our highly qualified UAE nationals.” Ms
Walid said.