Labor Day reminds of the government’s promise to provide 100,000 job opportunities this year.. Is it realistic?
Amman Today
publish date 2023-05-01 12:06:21
Compass – Amman
On Monday, Jordan and the world celebrate Workers’ Day, which falls on May 1 of each year, so that Jordanians remember the government’s promises to provide one million job opportunities in the next ten years.
The government promised, through what was announced in the vision of economic modernization for the next ten years, to provide one million job opportunities, 100,000 of which this year.
The vision puts the government in front of a real test, in implementing its promises at a time when economic growth rates slowed down in the fourth quarter of last year to 2%, compared to 2.6% in the previous quarter.
The National Employment Program 2022 “Tasheel”, which was launched by the government in cooperation with the World Bank last year, seeks to provide 60,000 job opportunities for Jordanians in the private sector. They work within agreements with the private sector establishments, which number 975.
Employment is carried out by employers according to their needs and in coordination with representatives of the economic sectors and fields. Financial incentives are provided for a period of six months for each worker: 130 dinars (wages subsidy) + 10 dinars (support for social security contributions) + 10 dinars (transportation allowance), which equals 150 dinars. .
How realistic is the government promise?
The head of the Labor Observatory, Ahmed Awad, said that providing 100,000 job opportunities this year is possible and not possible at the same time.
In a press interview, he indicated that the recovery of some sectors such as tourism and construction plays a role in providing job opportunities, and this is expected during the current year, pointing out that there are daily announcements to request employees in various sectors.
He added that the government’s training and rehabilitation programs through the Vocational Training Corporation are working to meet the needs of the labor market for qualified and trained Jordanian manpower, and thus the possibility of replacing them with expatriate workers.
The unemployment rate during the last quarter of last year 2022 was about 22.9%, a decrease of 0.4% compared to the same period in 2021, and a limited decline of 0.2% compared to the third quarter of last year.
The unemployment rate for males reached 20.6% and for females 31.7%. Official data show that the highest unemployment rate was recorded during the last quarter of last year, in the age group from 15 to 19 years at 53.9%, and in the category from 20 to 24 years at a rate of 46.2%.
According to the educational level, the unemployment rate among holders of university degrees with a baccalaureate degree or higher was 28.4%, while the unemployment rate for those with education less than high school reached 20.7%.
The reality of workers’ rights
The National Center for Human Rights affirmed the role of workers in advancing the process of sustainable development and the development and advancement of all sectors in the state, indicating that the right to work is one of the rights that have been constitutionally protected under Article (23), which stipulates that work is a right for all citizens and the state must provide it for Jordanians under directives. and the advancement of the national economy.
The same article emphasized that the state should protect work and set legislation to protect it based on a set of controls and considerations to be fair and equitable.
The Center indicated that, in the same context, the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights guaranteed the right to work, according to Article 7 of it, which indicated that the states parties to the Covenant recognize the right of every person to just and equitable working conditions, pointing out that Jordan had ratified this covenant. And publish it in the Official Gazette to become part of the national legal system.
The Center stated that the time when it emphasizes the positive developments that Jordan witnessed in the field of protecting and promoting the right to work, most notably what the year 2021 witnessed with the approval of the law amending the Prevention of Human Trafficking Law No. (10) of 2021.
Some amendments were made to the Labor Law in 2023, some of which are considered positive, such as the addition of sexual harassment to Article (29) exempting children of Jordanian women married to non-Jordanians residing in the Kingdom from obtaining work permits, in addition to prohibiting any discrimination on the basis of sex that would prejudice equal opportunities. yen workers.
The Director of the Central Labor Inspection Directorate at the Ministry of Labor, Haitham Al-Najdawi, told the Jordan News Agency that the ministry plays a major role in protecting workers’ rights, pointing to the Labor Law that guarantees these rights in line with international standards in promoting the concept of decent work.
He pointed out that the law specified a number of conditions, most notably the work contract, working conditions, paid and unpaid leave, as well as protection of the rights of working women, working hours and holidays, overtime, and many conditions and procedures that guarantee the protection of workers.
The National Center for Human Rights affirmed its previous recommendations of the need to review economic policies to ensure an increase in employment rates and reduce high unemployment rates among young people, to reconsider the minimum wage to ensure its suitability to life requirements and high prices, to improve working conditions and occupational safety, and to work vigorously to link outputs Learning about the needs of the labor market.
He stressed the need to tighten control over workplaces to reduce the various violations that workers may be exposed to, and to continue to work hard and continuously in order to achieve the goals of sustainable development 2030, especially those related to poverty eradication and the goal related to decent work, economic growth and reducing inequalities.
The Jordanian Center for Labor Rights “Workers’ House” stopped in a report on the unprecedented challenges facing the Jordanian labor market, stressing the need to reform the economic reality and improve the reality of the labor market, raise the levels of coordination between production parties, review and evaluate employment and training services, and improve working conditions and environment Social protections, harmonization between education outputs and the needs of the labor market, stimulating women’s economic participation, and improving wage levels, especially for vulnerable groups of workers.
The center recommended strengthening the capabilities of social safety nets, increasing their allocations, and directing them to various vulnerable groups of citizens and various low-income families, expanding coverage of health insurance, reducing the value of social security subscription, as well as providing the necessary support to small and medium enterprises to maintain the continuity of their work and protect the job opportunities they provide. the purchasing power of the citizen.
The Jordanian Labor Observatory of the Phoenix Center for Economic and Informatics Studies prepared a report that included a number of axes to raise and improve labor policies, as well as a number of recommendations to improve working conditions in Jordan.
The Director of the Decent Work Program for Women at the International Labor Organization, Reem Aslan, explained the organization’s role in launching a “business clinic” for business owners in the kindergarten sector to support resilience during and after the Corona pandemic, and a “legal clinic” for male and female workers, to raise legal awareness of female workers in the field of work and protections. In addition to launching a “Hemaya” platform to receive complaints, in cooperation with the Ministry of Labor.
Aslan indicated that most of the complaints submitted were by workers in the private education sector, most of which relate to the employers’ failure to pay the agreed-upon wages and non-compliance with the minimum set by the Ministry of Labor; It is noteworthy that these complaints were dealt with by directing the complainants to the concerned authorities such as the Ministry of Labor or resorting to the judiciary in the event that an amicable solution was not reached between the two parties.
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Jordan News
Source : اخبار الاردن