JORDAN LAUNCHES MAJOR ENFORCEMENT CAMPAIGN IN

C O N F I D E N T I A L AMMAN 003257

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

STATE PASS TO USTR

E.O. 12958: DECL: 05/08/2021
TAGS: ELAB ETRD KTEX ECON PGOV JO
SUBJECT: JORDAN LAUNCHES MAJOR ENFORCEMENT CAMPAIGN IN
RESPONSE TO ALLEGATIONS OF LABOR ABUSES IN THE GARMENT
INDUSTRY

REF: AMMAN 629

Classified By: AMBASSADOR DAVID HALE FOR REASONS 1.4 (B) AND (D).


1. (C) SUMMARY: In response to a highly-publicized report
criticizing the labor conditions of foreign workers in
Jordan's garment industry, the Government of Jordan (GOJ) and
the association representing the sector are launching a swift
campaign to strengthen the enforcement of Jordan's labor laws
and to respond to the allegations. Ministry of Labor (MOL)
inspection teams were fanning out to inspect factories
throughout Jordan the day after the allegations broke. The
Minister of Labor issued a message coordinated with other
government ministries and the industry stating unequivocally
that Jordan's government does not and will not condone
"sweatshop" operations within its borders. According to the
Minister of Industry and Trade, the most immediate next steps
will be a complete report on the allegations by the Ministry
of Labor, another report by the association, and a series of
letters from the Minister of Industry and Trade to U.S.
buyers of Jordan's garments highlighting that the GOJ's labor
laws are up to international standards, that the government
takes the allegations of abuse very seriously, and that it
will close factories where abuse is proven. END SUMMARY.

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THE ALLEGATIONS
--------------


2. (U) On May 3, the New York Times published an article
alleging abuse of foreign workers in Jordanian garment
factories operating under the U.S.-Jordan Free Trade
Agreement. The article drew heavily from a report issued
later that day by the National Labor Committee (NLC),a U.S.
non-governmental organization, entitled, "U.S.-Jordan Free
Trade Agreement Descends into Human Trafficking and
Involuntary Servitude." The report cites the NLC's partners
in developing the report as the "Bangladesh Center for
Workers' Solidarity" and the National Garment Workers
Federation.


3. (U) The NLC report contains a range of allegations,
including charges of human trafficking levied against labor
contractors in Bangladesh supplying the sector. NOTE:
Foreign workers in the factories also include large numbers
of workers from China and Sri Lanka not highlighted in the
NLC report. END NOTE. Other allegations include workers
having their passports confiscated, working extremely long
shifts, being cheated of wages, living in squalid dormitories
provided by the factories, and, in some cases, being
physically abused. In addition, the report alleged that
workers were not allowed to leave the industrial estates
where the factories are located.

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JORDAN'S PUBLIC REACTIONS
--------------


4. (U) Both the government and the industry have moved
swiftly to address the allegations and to ensure that
enforcement of Jordan's labor laws is improved. Within 48
hours of the story's emergence, the Ministry of Labor, the
responsible agency for enforcement in this area, sent out
inspection teams to the country's garment factories, most of
them located in the Qualifying Industrial Zones (QIZs).
NOTE: These QIZs were established in the wake of Jordan's
peace treaty with Israel to manufacture goods for export to
the U.S. tariff-free and quota-free. All goods must contain
both Jordanian and Israeli content. There are 63 garment
factories currently operating in 12 QIZs located throughout
Jordan, although only six QIZs are active. END NOTE.)


5. (U) On May 3, Jordan's Minister of Labor Bassem Al-Salem
issued a press release admitting that several companies
operating in "free trade zones", (i.e., QIZs) had "huge
violation files" in the ministry. The release stated that
the ministry had closed down some violators, but had not "won
the war as other companies will spring up continuously with
new names." Al-Salem met with the King and Prime Minister
Bakhit the same day to discuss the NLC report, and announced


afterward that he was finishing "a binding code of conduct to
ensure that employers maintain decent working standards and
conditions." He added that new work permits for foreign
employees will be granted only to factories meeting these new
standards.


6. (U) On May 4, the GOJ issued a statement from the
Minister of Labor which had been coordinated with the
Ministry of Industry and Trade and with the Jordan Garments,
Accessories and Textiles Exporters' Association (JGATE). The
statement, issued in the form of a letter to the editor of
the New York Times, said, "Jordan's government wishes to
state unequivocally that it does not and will not condone
'sweatshop' operations within our borders." The letter went
on to emphasize that the government takes the allegations
very seriously, will launch an immediate investigation and
will intensify its labor inspection and monitoring systems to
ensure compliance with Jordanian and established
international standards.


7. (U) On May 7, the Ministry of Labor announced that it
was inspecting all of the factories cited in the NLC report.
In this on-going campaign, 18 warning notices had already
been issued by the end of the day on the 7th. The Minister
announced that all factories that did not pay workers the
minimum wage would be required to pay back wages due the
worker, dating back to when the worker entered into duty.
The Minister also instructed managers of the QIZ factories to
establish guidance boards which can explain the workers'
rights under Jordanian law in the languages of the workers
themselves.

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JORDAN'S NEXT STEPS
--------------


8. (C) In a meeting with textile industry association
"JGATE" on May 6, Minister of Industry and Trade Sharif Zu'bi
said Jordan must get out of the business of relying on
foreign labor. If true, the allegations in the NLC report
were "unacceptable." Referring to Ministry of Labor figures
showing that the sector employs 40% Jordanian workers and 60%
foreign workers, he said he wants that ratio reversed by the
end of the year. NOTE: This ratio differs from figures
compiled by the U.S. Embassy in 2005 from a survey of the
QIZs showing that 55% of the workers in the sector were
Jordanian. The discrepancy may in part be due to the fact
that the MOL figures include sub-contractors not included on
QIZ rolls. Post is repeating the survey to obtain the latest
figures. END NOTE.


9. (C) Zu'bi stressed that Jordan would not respond to the
inaccuracies in the NLC report -- e.g., companies cited which
never existed in Jordan, or others which were closed two
years ago. He said the Ministry of Labor had been aware of
problems in the sector for some time, and that he is awaiting
a full report from MOL on the violations lodged last year and
the MOL responses to them. Jordan's labor laws are up to
international standards, he emphasized, but "enforcement and
monitoring has been lacking." Investors who do not meet
those standards must have their factories shut down. There
can be concessions on taxes and other issues, but not on
labor and environmental standards, he said.


10. (C) Zu'bi then laid out the next steps for confronting
the crisis. Both the Ministry of Labor and JGATE will carry
out full investigations of the allegations and issue reports.
JGATE noted that MOL teams were already fanning out
throughout the country to carry out investigations. Next,
Zu'bi would write a letter to each of the U.S. buyers of the
garments produced in Jordan. The letters will stress that
the Government of Jordan takes the NLC allegations very
seriously, but that Jordan's labor laws are up to
international and International Labor Organization (ILO)
standards. There will be full disclosure of problems
uncovered, and the public and private sectors will work
together on enforcement. Zu'bi said some factories will face
severe penalties including closure and this, too, will be
stressed in his letter.


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THE PRIVATE SECTOR AND INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS REACT
-------------- --------------


11. (SBU) U.S. buyers are already reacting to the
allegations. The acting CEO of JGATE reported that Levi
Strauss is canceling orders. Other buyers are reported to be
threatening to cancel large orders scheduled for summer 2006.
WalMart representatives were in Jordan when the story broke,
and the U.S. chain is now expanding its inspections; other
buyers are sending out inspection teams as well. The ILO and
the Fair Labor Organization are also sending teams to Jordan.


--------------
COMMENT
--------------


12. (C) Managing this crisis will be a major test of the
ability of the GOJ and the garment sector to respond to the
allegations quickly and effectively. The sector generated
$1.2 billion in exports to the U.S. in 2005, by far the
largest export sector for Jordan. The bulk of these exports
were under the QIZ agreement, but more and more production is
shifting to qualifying under FTA rules. The U.S.-Jordan FTA
was the first FTA to include labor standards, and was written
in a way that requires Jordan to apply its own labor laws in
order to meet its FTA commitments. The Ministry of Labor
will be under great pressure to reinvigorate both its
monitoring and enforcement regimes. The GOJ will need to
close factories not meeting Jordanian and international labor
standards, and ensure that they do not re-open under other
names.


13. (C) That said, many Jordanian garment manufacturers are
clean, well-run and compliant with labor laws. Jordan must
work to ensure that those companies are not caught up in the
wave which will take down the minority who engage in
unacceptable practices. Pending the findings of the on-going
investigations, there is consensus among government and
industry officials that some of the allegations in the NLC
report are likely true. Both the government and the industry
must respond forcefully to these violations, a number of
which seem to be sourced to sub-contracting firms.
Regardless of the source of the problem, it must be dealt
with forcefully.
HALE