7 step Salary negotiation for Dubai newbies

Over the last 2 years, the living costs in Dubai has multiplied - and so have the new job seekers! We all agree that Dubai has a charisma of its own, that attracts scores and scores of career makers, investors, the big-bold-beautiful, and what not!

However, perhaps in between the fast pace the Dubai life has become, all of us overlook the new comers - especially the not so priveleged - who dream of making and sustaining a "better" life than in their native countries.

Keeping them in mind, I had submitted a salary negotiation advice thread in DiscussDubai.com almost 2 years ago! I was amazed last week to see that this discussion page earned the highest number of hits (>7000) among all other topics! Such is the demand of Dubai as a career builder!

For all those who'd like to know the 7 steps for negotiation, here are the suggestions:

1) Unlearn your past experiences / expectations
2) Calculate your basic minimum needs first
3) Adjust with your “lifestyle” expectations
4) Do some homework
5) Always ask for a little more
6) Always get to know the complete package (and more)
7) Do not budge too lower than your expectations

For details on these steps, please Click Here

Many of you'd agree these are just plain simple suggestions - no big deal here! But it's really amazing that even after 2 years I still keep on getting personal messages asking for advice (and I gladly do give the!) before taking decisions.

Hopefully by including the above link on this forum some more people may get some help!

How NOT to be ripped-off while taking a loan

Usually, for every new entrant in Dubai - i.e. one who has got an employment, got an accomodation and a bank account - applying for a personal / car loan is the 2nd most important step towards settling down.All the banks - esp. the MNC banks - know about this quite as well , and are sitting there just to grab you to make a kill! Most often the rate is the currently applicable rate in the country - but offers / add-ons / ripp-offs are all dependent upon who proves the smartest - the bank or you .

This post is all about making you the smarter (well that's how I feel - I might be mistaken).

1) Don't jump on to the very first "lucrative" offer, which is often linked with your credit card - These loans prove to be extremely costly - you tend to pay an extremely high rate of interest if you're not a good personal finance manager!

2) Look for at least 5-6 offers of local as well as MNC banks - Often quoted rates and benefits are better in case of local banks, since the govt. favors these banks to a large extent to make them grow.

3) Look for the "Interest Rate on Reducing Principal" rather than "Simple / Flat Rate" - Regardless of the simple flat rates quoted to you, the former is the process followed by every bank, not only in Dubai, but internationally. This falls under banking process. Hence look for the lowest applicable rate on reducing principal amount.

4) Look for the hidden fees - Often banks say there's zero processing fees. However, they might name it differently, saying that you' have to pay just X% as documentation charges. Clarify what other charges are applicable - esp. in case of banks which tend to offer easy loans and goodies.

5) Try to pay processing / documentation / other charges separately - Often banks are known to be notorious in adding up these charges into the principal, and then apply the interest while calculating the EMI. Logically, I don't see a reason why a customer should pay interests on these at all!!! Usually this charge ranges from 0.5 to 3%. A loan amount of AED 100,000 would therefore have a documentation fee of only AED 3000! If your flat rate is 8%, you'd keep on paying at the rate of AED 10 per month for the whole period of your payment plan - which is attrocious Hence, if you can, delay the first instalment of your EMI, but pay these "hidden" charges separately.

6) Look for the "Early settlement fees" - Often banks tend to have a high rate for early settlement - just to discourage a client to settle accounts earlier than the total period. Usually when a loan is approved and given, the interests charges on monthly basis serve as constant monthly incomes for the banks, which they don't want to let go.

7) Finally, Decide well on your type of loan - When you are new to this country, you might feel cautious not to get into a debt which you cannot handle. While it's necessary to have a car, the same could prove a liability a few months later, if (God Forbid) either you or company decides to let go / move on. If you're very confident of staying the whole period of your payback period in the country, then a Car loan to buy a car proves cheaper. If you feel you might not stay the full period, then a personal loan for the same amount would be helpful.

No one wants to buy a used car with EMI linked to it. Nor you can sell a car with a loan attached to it (practically the car is owned by the bank, not you) The bank too charges an extra fee (other than the Early settlement fee) in case of Car loans when you ask for settlement. A personal loan can be settled early at your own pace, which can be used intelligently in early settlement.

Lastly, you should consult a finance person to check and recheck if the EMI you are paying correctly recalculates the principal you were promised. I was quoted a flat rate of 3.95% on a car loan, with no processing fee. It was after many months I realized that finally, I'm paying 4.33% flat rate. By that time it was too late and all papers I signed, intelligently avoided mention of these finer aspects. Therefore, do find a way to cross check this!! (If you need a reckoner contact me)

Hope after reading the above, you would be doubly careful before taking a loan.
(Photo Courtesy) This blog spot does not have any relation to the photo source.

Of multicultarism and discrimination

The subject of cultural integration has been debated upon quite a number of times, and it would continue to do so perhaps throughout the growing years of Dubai / UAE. The issue is whether Dubai is a cultural melting pot or whether cultural co-existence. I have talked about this subject in my columns here and here. However I came across a very interesting outlook from Marco Blankenburgh in an old issue of Time Out magazine. Marco's company Knowledge Workx specializes in what he calls "intercultural training", which I agree is extremely essential for the ever-growing population of Dubai.

He agrees that the problem of people not being able to adapt culturally is indeed a serious and growing issue. Especially now that the pressure on people, in terms cost of living and quality of life, is rising:
"We co-exist but don't really mix, and we assume that it is supposed to be this way. So if I appoint a boss from a certain nationality to lead a certain department, it's assumed that people from that nationality will start appearing and sooner or later they will be the majority. If you have a social event at your company, you typically see people from the same nationality grouped together and there is no real synergy among the team."

I feel he also voices a very commonly felt syndrome which is rarely accepted or given credence in public - that of racial discrimination at the work place. Despite claiming that they are "equal opportunities employer", majority of the companies either flout it openly or have numerous ways possible to justify their stance.

For example the recruitment process itself starts with "Western educated" or "Indian Male" as a few of the pre-requisities for some positions, and comparatively much lower salaries offered to some nationalities despite more experience, maturity and values offered in return. (See the blog posts here, here and here.)

Marco agrees too, that people should be paid equal salaries regardless of their nationalities:
"It helps to create true cultural synergy and attaches value to the individual's skills rather than their nationality. You can't do it overnight ... It is so entrenched that it could take years to change. Slavery was abolished 200 years ago but the effects of it haven't gone
away..."

Any other ideas, comments or points of view?

Photo Courtesy

Take a pledge on Obesity

Today being World Obesity Day, I’m sure there would be some kind of opinions voiced from anyone who wishes to offer their pennies on the subject! Especially when UAE has a substantial number of residents who are already on their way to obesity! (Perhaps on my part I already gave my pennies away… see here and here and here).

However, the question that bothers me continuously is: Are we really serious enough on this issue? Almost on every second day we see some article in the newspapers talking about the subject, or see some dietician or a health official commenting on the issue with some authority! But any kind of concrete solutions are almost none! No wonder that 20% of high school children are facing an obese future in UAE (based on a Global School based Health Survey in UAE – conducted by WHO, UNAid, UNICEF and Unesco)

Gulf news perhaps attempted for the umpteenth time to put some sense among the masses – by targeting school kids as the most important segment to be prevented from this pandemic this time. You can see the coverage here, here, here and here.

Here are some important facts and information tid-bits from Gulf News:

1. 50% of school children eat fruit and vegetable at least once a day. These are the ones who have been taught the benefits of healthy eating.

2. 12% of kids aged 12-16 yrs are already obese in UAE, while 20% + are under risk of being obese.

3. Boys are more obese than girls; however the trend reverses for overweight children.

4. 20% eat shawarmas, biryani, carbonated drinks or high fat food at least twice a day!

5. 18% eat fast food at least thrice a week!

6. 25% of children are found obese in UK

7. 17% of kids aged 2-19 yrs are obese and 34% are overweight in USA

8. 5.6% of young adults in China are obese, while 17.6% are overweight

9. Suggested Top ten brain foods for youngsters: Fish; Nuts and seeds; Soya products; Pulses; Wholegrains; Broccoli; Organic eggs; Cheese; Fruits; Ostrich meat.

Taking these as responsible parents, let us take a pledge to consciously to prevent our progenies being affected by this pandemic

Roads to Compulsive Shopping

Further to my previous post on this blog, there’s additional evidence that UAE indeed encourages binge shopping.

An in-depth report in Gulf News today, quotes AC Nielsen that:

1. UAE boasts the 2^nd highest number of per-capita recreational shoppers in the world: 30% of the consumers in UAE go shopping “at least once a week” (compared to 36% in Hong Kong)
2. 49% of UAE consumers regard clothes shopping as a necessity chore – the highest in the world! - 13% find it therapeutic to shop for clothes
3. An average UAE shopper takes 4 shopping trips every week, making a purchase on 7 out of 10 visits to the mall
4. An average UAE consumer spends 127 hours per year in supermarkets alone!

As mentioned earlier, there's an increasing trend towards recreational shopping in UAE. Within the recreational shoppers, chances are great that there are many for whom shopping is an obsession / compulsion.

Currently, per capita shopping area in Dubai is 4 times that of USA! With the new malls in place, when the overall retail space in UAE quadruples by 2010, there will be even more chances that more and more people in UAE would be induced to shopping as a recreation than a necessity – hence again contributing stimulus for “Compulsive Shopping”.

Apart from some ideas proposed before, what else can we do to avoid the disorder taking over?

Technorati :UAE. Psychology. Behaviour. Business. Compulsive shopping