A study issued by the Phenix Center showed that 46% of the study sample of over 380 working women in the governorates of Tafila, Madaba, Karak, and Maan receive a wage that is lower than the minimum wage.
The study, which was issued on Monday, also revealed a relationship between women's low wages at work and their physical health. The study found that the majority of women are deprived of health insurance and social protections, since they receive wages lower than the minimum wage standard of 260 Jordanian Dinars.
Ola Badr, the researcher who conducted the study, said in a special session held by Phenix Center yesterdayto discuss the results of the study titled "Women's Safety at Work" that violence against women in various formal and informal sectors reduces women's economic participation and leads to the reluctance of many of them to join the labor market.
During the session, which was held via the Zoom platform, in cooperation with Oxfam and under the umbrella of the Arab-Danish Partnership Program, she explained that 50% of the women who responded to the survey do not have health insurance, while 36.6% are not enrolled in social security.
The study revealed that just 47.8% of women’s workplaces in the labor market abide by occupational health and safety practices, which means that more than half of women are exposed to work injuries of different levels of severity. Additionally, the study showed that only 13% of the respondents said that they are able to access their legal financial rights, such as accessing loans and provident funds. The study argues that these factors disempower women both economically and socially. The study also found that women’s health is adversely affected as a result of a lack of health insurance and the high costs of treatment compared with their salaries.
The study considered that women's representation in labor unions and professional syndicates to be still weak, which makes it more challenging for employees to engage in collective bargaining in order to improve the working conditions.
The study recommended combating violence against women in the work environment, improving their economic conditions, and enhancing their inclusion within the labor market.