Dubai Duty Free to recall nearly 700 laid-off workers as airport traffic picks up

The Philippine Overseas Labour Office in Dubai says it is processing the applications of retail workers to return to the emirate

Dubai Duty Free will rehire almost 700 workers who were laid off during the pandemic. Photo: Emirates Airline

The move comes after passenger numbers picked up at airports in Dubai. Sarah Dea / The National

Tang boxes at the Dubai Duty Free warehouse near the airport. Pawan Singh / The National

Dubai's airport operator forecasts 57 million passengers in 2022, and 28.7 million this year. Photo: Emirates Airline

Paul Griffiths, chief executive of Dubai Airports, said the travel hub handled about 20 per cent more passenger traffic in the third quarter of 2021 than in the same period of last year. AP

Dubai International Airport will reopen Concourse A on November 24, bringing it to full capacity after 20 months of reduced operations due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Dubai Duty Free will rehire nearly 700 workers who were laid off during the Covid-19 pandemic.

The lack of travel following the outbreak early last year had led to a slump in airport shopping.

But now with passenger numbers picking up at the airports in the emirate, the organisation said it will rehire 685 Filipino employees.

The Philippine Overseas Labour Office in Dubai said it is processing the applications of retail workers to ensure their easy return to the emirate.

Last week, Dubai's airport operator raised its forecast for annual passenger traffic this year by an additional two million.

"We're projecting 57 million for next year at the moment and 28.7 million for this year," Paul Griffiths, the chief executive of Dubai Airports, told The National.

The airport has recovered 80 per cent of point-to-point traffic, through transit travel was only at 20 per cent of pre-Covid levels, he said.

As a consequence, Dubai International Airport will reopen its Concourse A on November 24, which will bring the airport to full capacity after 20 months of reduced operations because of the pandemic.

Dubai World Central, the emirate's second hub, will re-open its passenger terminal in May 2022 after operations were shut down because of the outbreak, Mr Griffiths said.

Dubai Airports targets 56 million passengers in 2022