Study calls for defence order to protect labour rights

AMMAN — A local study released on Saturday called on the government to issue a new defence order that would protect the rights of labourers during the COVID-19 crisis.

The study, prepared by the Jordan Labour Watch, which is affiliated to the Phenix Centre for Economic Studies (PCES),  monitored the situation in the formal private sector from March 25 until April 2.

“We received 406 complaints from labourers who either received half of their salaries or did not receive their salaries for March or even before,” said Director of PCES Ahmad Awad.

The study indicated that otherentities “sacked their employees or forced them to take leave, although the curfew that was imposed on citizens should not be taken from employees’ vacation days”, Awad told The Jordan Times.

The study covered labourers’ rights in the following sectors:  Transport, tourism, industry, schools, hotels, construction, trade, medical and food industries.     

Awad added that some entities “that are making money because they continue to work during the crisis are taking advantage of the situation and are also refraining from paying employees’ salaries, firing employees or forcing them to resign”.

“The government needs to act fast to salvage the deteriorating situation of the private sector by securing labourers’ rights, since I strongly believe that the 406 surveyed are only a fraction of what thousands of employees are facing or might face in the near future,” Awad stressed.

In light of this situation, Awad called on the government “to issue a defence order prohibiting the dismissal of workers from all private sector establishments and requiring these entities to pay their wages as usual and prohibiting them from deducting any amounts from their salaries during the period of work suspension”.

The study also suggested that, based on best international practices, “the government initiatea dialogue that involves all parties — the private sector, trade unions and civil society — so that everyone can develop policies to counter the economic impact on the sector and the labour market”.

The study also recommended that the government provide swift financial support packages for businesses affected by the COVID-19 crisis, with the aim of keeping up their viability and continuity of business and maintaining their employees and their rights.

Commenting on the study, economist Reem Badran said that calling on the government to impose a defence act to enforce certain action is “not the correct procedure”.

“I believe the government and the private sector should work together to find a common solution because some companies do not have money to pay their employees because of the current situation that has forced businesses to shut down until the crisis is over,” she said.

Badran told The Jordan Times that the private business sector can benefit from the Central Bank of Jordan’s (CBJ) recent decision to launch a JD500 million soft financing programme for small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), but said that more measures need to be adopted to salvage the economy, which “will be negatively affected by the COVID-19 crisis”.

On Wednesday, the CBJ decided to launch the soft financing programme with the Jordan Loan Guarantee Corporation acting as guarantor on the loans, with the aim of addressing the COVID-19 crisis and providing financing to professionals and craftspersons, as well as SMEs, to cover their operational working capital and fixed assets.

“It is easier now for the private sector to have access to the CBJ’s soft financing programme to support their employees,” Badran said.

“Employees should also adapt to the situation and make small compromises in these extraordinary times,” Badran said.

“The government could also consider allowing the opening up of private sector entitiesby 20 or 30 per cent, according to each sector, while abiding by strict health restrictions, which would help them maintain minimum incomes for their companies and employees,” Badran added.

Economist Wajdi Makhamreh agreed with Badran, stressing that the government should “intervene and impose monitoring on private sector entities to ensure that they pay them their salaries since the CBJ offered the JD500 million soft financing programme for small- and medium-sized enterprises”.

“The CBJ’s step is very important and the private sector needs to take advantage of this by taking soft loans at very low interest and paying their employees until this crisis is over,” Makhamreh told The Jordan Times.