Abu Dhabi, UAE: In a new testament of shifting tides towards empowering the UAE’s working parents, the Abu Dhabi Early Childhood Authority (ECA)’s Parent-friendly Label™ (PFL) program has attracted applications from 83 organizations in its third cycle, reflecting the increasing interest from organizations across the UAE, including some of the world-leading organizations operating in the UAE. The innovative program allows semi-governmental, private and third-sector organizations in the UAE to apply to earn the Label, demonstrating their commitment to a supportive parent-friendly work culture and policies that positively impact children 0-8 years old and their parents.

In line with the ongoing trend of shifting to parent-friendly work cultures, the impact of the parent-friendly policies and practices across applicant organizations in the third cycle has seen an increase reaching a total of 163,000 employees, and benefiting parents, children, and the broader community across the UAE. Cycle 3 applications have recorded 57% increase in numbers of benefiting parents, along with 25% increase in number of young children (under 8 years old), as well as 51% increase in numbers of children of determination benefiting from parent-supportive culture at their parents’ workplaces.

Building on the success of the second cycle, which attracted applications from different industries, the program has broadened its outreach to new industries, receiving the highest applications from professional services organizations, followed by education industry, with nurseries leading this industry, while energy and utilities as well as healthcare and pharma industries came in third place.

All applications will undergo a rigorous assessment based on 19 criteria across five categories, such as parental leave, flexible work, family care, family wellbeing and culture. An independent panel of expert judges from across the UAE will ensure fair, objective, and anonymous assessment of all applications. The panel will review all applications to select the best applications, where organizations will either earn the Level 1 classification (PFL) for exceeding local leading parent-friendly policies and practices or Level 2 (PFL+) for meeting or exceeding global standards.

In Cycle 2, His Highness Sheikh Mohamed Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President of the UAE, honored the label earners, including Emirates Nature-WWF and Tappy Toes Nursery with the PFL+ classification, while Bain & Co, Mubadala Investment Company, Novartis, Nestle, LinkedIn, Houbara Defence & Security, Visa Middle East, Chalhoub Group, and Nabta Health. The label earners have set a benchmark for supportive workplaces and demonstrated impactful parent-friendly policies and practices, including bonding leave for new parents, extended maternity and paternity leaves, and flexible work arrangements for new parents, among others.

Irrespective of the application’s final result, PFL provides all applicant organizations with a comprehensive and complementary feedback report stating their strengths and areas for improvement to assist them in their journey towards becoming a parent-friendly workplace. Since its launch in 2021, the program has reached over 148,000 employees and positively impacted the lives of 67,000 working parents and 50,000 children, including 1,492 Children of Determination.

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About the Parent-friendly Label™ (PFL) Program

The Parent-friendly Label™ (PFL) is a UAE-wide voluntary workplace award program that allows organizations operating in the country within the semi-governmental, private and third sectors, the opportunity to earn a label in recognition of their commitment to a supportive work culture and policies which ultimately impact children of 0-8 years old. The program recognizes earner organizations across two levels; Level 1: Parent-friendly Label for workplaces that exceed local requirements and standards. Level 2: Parent-friendly+ for workplaces that meet or exceed global leading policies and practices. A large number of organizations across the UAE have already started their journey towards becoming a parent-friendly workplace, impacting +148,000 employees and +50,000 children to-date. The program’s assessment criteria was reviewed by UNICEF Gulf.