How Do I Apply?

Applicant Resources

FAQ

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How Do I Apply?

Step 1

Take the Eligibility Test to check whether you are eligible to earn the Parent-friendly Label.

Step 2

Read the Applicant Handbook to understand the criteria against which your organization will be assessed.

Note:

Throughout the application process, we cannot provide any information on the status of your evaluation until completion.

Step 3

Complete Section 1 of the online Application Form. You will then receive an automated e-mail with the link to your organization’s Parent-friendly Experience Survey.

Step 4

Circulate the survey to your employees, keeping in mind that this is a mandatory component of your application process. We recommend allocating no less than 1 month to complete this step.

Step 5

Ensure that you have uploaded sufficient supporting evidence in your Application Form and submit it before the specified deadline (to be announced later).

In acknowledgment of your submission, you should receive an automated thank you email.

Step 1

Take the Eligibility Test to check whether you are eligible to earn the Parent-friendly Label.

Step 2

Read the Applicant Handbook to understand the criteria against which your organization will be assessed.

Note:

Throughout the application process, we cannot provide any information on the status of your evaluation until completion.

Step 3

Complete Section 1 of the online Application Form. You will then receive an automated e-mail with the link to your organization’s Parent-friendly Experience Survey.

Step 4

Circulate the survey to your employees, keeping in mind that this is a mandatory component of your application process. We recommend allocating no less than 1 month to complete this step.

Step 5

Ensure that you have uploaded sufficient supporting evidence in your Application Form and submit it before the specified deadline (to be announced later).

In acknowledgment of your submission, you should receive an automated thank you email.

The Criteria Categories

Innovation

We also invite you to share how your organization has applied creative and non-traditional approaches to better support parents through innovative workplace policies and practices.

1. Parental Leave

Dedicated leave days and arrangements provided to parents to support them before, during and on return from the birth or adoption of their child.

2. Flexible Work

Flexible work practices are accommodated to allow for caring responsibilities and changing family arrangements.

3. Family Care

Employees are supported and empowered to make choices to reconcile work and caring responsibilities.

4. Family Wellbeing

Support for the emotional, mental, and physical wellbeing of employees and their families is offered.

5. Workplace Culture

Parent-friendly policies and practices are embedded into organizational culture through training, professional development, monitoring and feedback mechanisms.

Assessment

Our assessment process is handled by an independent third party to ensure neutrality. A Judging Panel made up of senior officials from leading public institutions is tasked with reviewing the third party’s recommendations on selection.

Parent-friendly

Workplaces in UAE that exceed local requirements and standards.

Parent-friendly

Plus

Workplaces in UAE that meet or exceed global leading policies and practices.

Valid for 2 years, with a check-in meeting at the end of Year 1 with the Assessors.

Testimonials from past applicants

Explore testimonials from past applicants, offering valuable insights into their transformative journeys with our program.

“When I sat down and looked at our leave policies and everything, I had added the requirements as per PFL. A lot of things were not there because of how young we are…I made some tweaks and used more strongly worded policies from sitting on your documents and then reflecting on what we had [which was 100% inspired action from going through the PFL framework].”

“The exercise for us was good to see what is required and to be able to align ourselves with the market in terms of what is expected and what helps with attraction.”

“A lot of our journey through your process was really illuminating in that it also gave us a lot to think about it- do we do this, do we not do this? …it was a great opportunity for us to think holistically about what it meant to truly be a parent-friendly workplace and as a result we have a lot of new documentation around policies…”

“Actually, interestingly, the challenge would have been knowing which ones [policies that need to be onboarded to have stronger policies]…Actually going through your process made us create a lot of them [policies]. For a small company like us, it was like which ones should we have and your process allowed us to cover some ground there.”

Eligibility test

Does your organization operate in the private sector, semi-government sector or third sector?

Yes

Does your organization have a valid trade license issued in the UAE?

Yes

Can your organization demonstrate a commitment to parent-friendliness?

Yes

Has your organization been established in the UAE for at least two years?

Yes

The Abu Dhabi Early Childhood Authority (ECA) is a government entity, based in Abu Dhabi, that supports holistic early childhood development. We do this by developing policies and laws, informing decision-making through research and transforming behavior.

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