Locals are less than 1% of the private workforce

I was told before arriving that you could spend an entire day out and about and never encounter an Emirati working. It took moving here to fully grasp that. From The National newspaper here's the quote of the day:

"Although nationals comprise a fifth of the UAE population, they account for less than one percent of the private sector workforce."

This led me to wonder, when have I ever encountered an Emirati working for a non-governmental agency or the cable/internet duopoly? I can only remember once at one of the stations I sent money home. A man was dressed as an Emirati, but that doesn't necessarily mean he was one.