Prolonged litigation and low value of compensation stand in the way of arbitrarily dismissed workers when resorting to court

Prolonged litigation and low value of compensation stand in the way of arbitrarily dismissed workers when resorting to court

Jordan Labour Watch - After a trial that lasted for more than a year and a half, the court issued its verdict in favor of the worker Hamad Ali who filed a lawsuit against his employer after her was arbitrarily dismissed, and according to the court rule the employer should pay him a compensation equivalent to half a month salary for each year of his service and a minimum of not less than two months, and a notice allowance in accordance to Article 25 of the Labor Law. 

Ali regretted filing a lawsuit, he says that he paid the law firm and transportation expenses to attend court sessions more than the value of compensation approved by the court, pointing out that the procedures will take long for him to collect the money from the company. 

While the Parliamentary Labor Committee are currently discussing the amendments to the Labor Law, the Jordan Labor Watch suggests amending the compensation for arbitrary dismissal, and say that the financial compensation shall cover one month per each of the years in which the worker has been employed by the company, in addition to a minimum wage of four months and other benefits stipulated on articles 32 and 33 of the Labor Law. Ali’s case may appear to be better than another citizen who has been trying to collect his compenstaion for more than five years. 

He has filed a labor case against the owner of the company in which he worked for more than 15 years and was arbitrary dismissed. Although Article 137 of the Labor Law requires the dismissal of labor cases within a maximum period of three months from the date of filing them, specialists confirm that they remain in the courts for many years as a result of several procedures. 

Transferring the case to the Court of Appeal extends the length in which the case stays in the courts as Article 137 of the Labor Law is limited within the Magistrate's Court, although the case takes much longer than three months even in the Magistrate's Court, the Court of Appeal deals with labor case like any other cases. 

Three workers confirmed their intention to back down from filing an arbitrary dismissal case against a factory owner after the lawyer explained to them the procedures of the courts and the expenses they will pay; they said they would pay more than the compensation. A labor study "The Labor Code and International Standards" confirmed that most cases of arbitrary dismissal resort to a direct understanding with the employer to pay compensation to the worker at the value stated in the amended temporary labor law because the value of the compensation is determined in the law on the basis of the period of service without giving the court discretion to determine its value.

This may encourage employers to arbitrary dismiss workers and pay them their legal compensation, which is considered very low, and thus the employer has fulfilled his obligations without having to enter into judicial disputes with the worker. The study pointed to the absence of clear policies and programs to address the effects of service termination and reduce long-term unemployment rates. The study criticized the lack of alternative means of recourse to the judiciary in the event of a dispute between the parties to the work as a result of service termination and the length of the proceedings, which burdens the parties, despite Labor Law provides that labor cases should be treated with urgency. 

The study aslo recommended the creation of awareness programs for the parties as required by international labor standards on the rights and duties of each side and provide access to their rights and the amicably solve disputes between them.