Jordan Labor Watch
For the second year in a row, the Jordan Labor Watch which is followed of the Phenix Center, launches its annual campaign to shed light on Decent Work issues in Jordan, which witnessed a remarkable decline since the beginning of Covid-19 pandemic.
It was obvious for the JLW after over ten years of monitoring Decent Work issues, that successive governments are still adopting the policy of weakening work conditions to boost the economy and stimulate investment, and abandon the gains which were accomplished in enhancing Decent Work environment. It’s components are resembled in enhancing jobs, basic rights at work, providing social protection, and encouraging social dialogue.
Covid-19 pandemic has revealed a clear deficiency in the dialogue between various stakeholders, such as workers, business owners, government and civil society organizations, due to the restrictions imposed by the Jordan Labor Code on the right to regulate the union and the collective bargaining, hence, such practices are violating the international obligations that were ratified by Jordan.
The Economic Priorities Program 2021-2023, also goes towards implementing flexible work policies, which means easing the currently available social protections and granting departments in the private sector and business owners more authority to control the termination processes and working hours, away from the Decent Work standards that are available in the current Labor Code.
This comes with an unprecedented rise-up in the unemployment rates, since it reached 25% in the first quarter of this year, due to the decline in the capabilities of the Jordanian national economy, which is resulted from the implementation of certain fiscal policies that led to high production costs, such as, the increase of energy prices, and tax burdens mainly. As the expansion of imposing Indirect Taxes (sales and private) the increase of deductions in Social Security Insurances. Furthermore, the existence of a wide gap between the needs of the Labor Market and the outcome of the educational system.