Citing high unemployment, economists praise nationality-based career restrictions

AMMAN — Economists, on Monday, welcomed a Cabinet decision to restrict the hiring of non-Jordanians in certain professions, citing beliefs that the move will partially curb unemployment.

The Cabinet recently approved the necessary measures to facilitate the transfer of non-Jordanian workers in various economic sectors, with the aim of regulating the labour market and limiting employment violations. The Cabinet set a three-month deadline to implement the procedures before reevaluating the results, according to the Jordan News Agency Petra.  The decision stops the recruitment of non-Jordanian workers, with the exception of domestic workers, workers with specialised skills and workers in the clothing and textile sector.

“This decision will contribute to a decrease in unemployment rates among Jordanian employees and help regulate the labour market,” Economist Wajdi Makhamreh told The Jordan Times on Monday.

“Many foreign workers are not subject to the Ministry of Labour’s supervision, and they do not pay fees to the ministry. Therefore, if the labour market is organised, it will generate additional revenue for the government; this should be the rule. Those who are allowed to work in a certain sector should pay the fees,” Makhamreh added.

Economist Awni Daoud told The Jordan Times on Monday that part of this decision involves regulating the hiring process and the labour market as a whole, something the private sector “has always demanded”.

“This decision provides more job opportunities for Jordanian workers, especially in the private sector. This will help increase employment for Jordanians,” he added.

Jordan’s unemployment rate went down by 0.4 per cent in the last quarter of 2022 compared with the same period in 2021, reaching 22.9 per cent, according to the Department of Statistics (DoS).

In its quarterly report on unemployment, the DoS said 20.6 per cent of men were unemployed during the last quarter of 2022, compared with 31.7 per cent of women. These figures were 0.8 per cent lower for men and 1 per cent higher for women, compared with the same quarter of 2021. 

The male unemployment rate rose by 0.1 per cent during the last three months of 2022, but declined for females by 1.4 per cent, compared with the third quarter of the year.