Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
09AMMAN230
2009-01-27 12:20:00
UNCLASSIFIED//FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY
Embassy Amman
Cable title:  

Update on Labor Issues in Jordan

Tags:  ELAB ECON ETRD EAID KTIP KTEX JO 
pdf how-to read a cable
VZCZCXYZ0002
PP RUEHWEB

DE RUEHAM #0230/01 0271220
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 271220Z JAN 09
FM AMEMBASSY AMMAN
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 4304
INFO RUEHLM/AMEMBASSY COLOMBO 0193
RUEHKA/AMEMBASSY DHAKA 0167
RUEHIL/AMEMBASSY ISLAMABAD 0276
RUEHKT/AMEMBASSY KATHMANDU 0059
RUEHML/AMEMBASSY MANILA 0126
RUEHNE/AMEMBASSY NEW DELHI 0299
RUEHOT/AMEMBASSY OTTAWA 0248
RUEHRO/AMEMBASSY ROME 1590
RUCPDOC/DEPT OF COMMERCE WASHDC
UNCLAS AMMAN 000230 

SENSITIVE
SIPDIS

STATE FOR EEB/TPP/ABT, NEA/ELA, NEA/RA, DRL, G/TIP
STATE PASS TO USTR (SFRANCESKI)
COMMERCE FOR ITA/OTEXA MARIA D'ANDREA

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: ELAB ECON ETRD EAID KTIP KTEX JO
SUBJECT: Update on Labor Issues in Jordan

REFS: A) 08 Amman 3267
B) 08 Amman 2206
C) 08 Amman 1063
D) 07 Amman 4993
E) 07 Amman 4991
F) 07 Amman 4038

SENSITIVE BUT UNCLASSIFIED. NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION OUTSIDE USG.

UNCLAS AMMAN 000230

SENSITIVE
SIPDIS

STATE FOR EEB/TPP/ABT, NEA/ELA, NEA/RA, DRL, G/TIP
STATE PASS TO USTR (SFRANCESKI)
COMMERCE FOR ITA/OTEXA MARIA D'ANDREA

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: ELAB ECON ETRD EAID KTIP KTEX JO
SUBJECT: Update on Labor Issues in Jordan

REFS: A) 08 Amman 3267
B) 08 Amman 2206
C) 08 Amman 1063
D) 07 Amman 4993
E) 07 Amman 4991
F) 07 Amman 4038

SENSITIVE BUT UNCLASSIFIED. NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION OUTSIDE USG.


1. (SBU) Summary: The Government of Jordan (GOJ) has continued to
take measures to strengthen its institutional capacity to identify
and correct labor violations, in part by hiring 60 new inspectors in

2008. Inspectors for the International Labour Office's (ILO) Better
Work Jordan program have also been trained and hope to begin
imminently assessments of factories in the Qualifying Industrial
Zones (QIZs). The number of foreign and local workers in the QIZs
has continued to decrease, as have the number of strikes. A new
minimum wage of 150JD ($212) went into effect January 1 but does not
apply to QIZ or domestic workers. Although additional amendments to
the labor law have not yet moved forward to parliament, the lower
house approved the anti-Trafficking in Persons (TIP) law, which now
awaits Senate approval. Source countries have decided to establish
a formal mechanism to discuss labor issues and share information.
End Summary.

MOL Restructuring and Growing Inspection Force
-------------- -


2. (U) MOL hired 60 new inspectors in 2008, to make a total
inspection force of 140. MOL plans to hire an additional 25
inspectors in 2009. MoL currently has 23 labor offices in Jordan,
of which 21 have an inspection function in addition to performing
other employment and work permit services. In 2009, MOL intends to
consolidate the inspection function into seven to nine regional
centers each with 10 to 30 inspectors who will cover a particular
area. The goal is to provide a critical inspection mass and
strengthen management capacity.


3. (SBU) Now that Canada and Jordan are about to sign an FTA with
its own labor provisions, MOL indicated that Canada has contributed
funding to an ILO project to support the establishment of a joint
labor inspector-police unit within the Jordanian government. The
project will also provide law enforcement and judicial staff

training in forced labor and anti-trafficking. A GOJ team will
visit Italy at the end of January 2009 to learn from the joint
Italian Carabinieri-inspector force.

Better Work Jordan (BWJ) Program Gets Going
--------------


4. (SBU) After what many have viewed as a slow start, the
International Labour Office's BWJ program began training its
inspector force in November 2008, with the cooperation of the MOL
and Ministry of Industry and Trade. The ILO and the Jordan Garment,
Accessories, and Textiles Exporters' Association (JGATE) are now
planning a series of events in each of the QIZs to register
factories in the program and begin independent inspections. Jones
NY Social Compliance Manager Kesava Murali told Econoff that once
the BWJ program is fully functional, Jones will stop doing
third-party inspections of factories. Cammy Wu, General Manager at
Richpine, confirmed on January 14 that U.S. buyers continue to do
third-party inspections every two to three months, in addition to
MOL inspections that are sometimes unannounced.

Labor in QIZs: Smaller Workforce, Fewer Strikes
-------------- --


6. (U) The Ministry of Labor reported that as of November 30, 2008,
there were 43,385 workers in 90 factories in the QIZs, including
10,697 Jordanians (of whom, 6,615 are women) and 32,688 foreign
workers. JGATE CEO Dana Bayyat noted that while factories were
having problems in early 2008 bringing in foreign labor, more
migrant workers are now available in the market because of factory
closures and downsizing (ref A).


7. (U) Interlocutors in both the private and public sectors have
noted that strikes in the QIZs have decreased significantly. MOL
estimated that there is about a strike a month, compared to five to
six in late 2007 (ref D). Some have speculated that in addition to
improvements in working conditions, fewer labor problems may also be
attributed to decreased orders reducing the pressure on factories to
have employees work long hours and meet deadlines.

New Minimum Wage Excludes Some Sectors
--------------


8. (U) Jordan increased the minimum wage from 110JD ($156) to 150JD
($212) on January 1, 2009 (ref A). According to MOL, this wage
increase applies neither to domestic workers, nor to workers in the
QIZs. The private sector argued that most QIZ workers, particularly
foreign workers, were subject to the provisions of three-year
employment contracts that set their wages, and the garment industry
could not afford the rise in wages for both foreign and Jordanian
employees due to other increased costs of production (refs D, F).


9. (SBU) MOL and JGATE signed a non-binding MOU, however, that
companies in the QIZs would provide a 40JD/month ($56) living
allowance to Jordanian workers currently earning 110JD/month so that
they are effectively getting the minimum wage. The GOJ and
factories have reasoned that the stipend puts Jordanians on a
financially equal footing with many of the foreign workers who
benefit from company-provided food and accommodation. According to
JGATE, factories have not yet actually begun to provide this
allowance, although they are expected to start by the end of January

2009.

New Golden List Lags
--------------


10. (SBU) Although new criteria for the MOL's Golden List were
released in April 2008 (ref C),a MOL advisor indicated to Econoff
on January 15 that only five companies had reapplied to be on the
new list, and of those, only one qualified. NOTE: The Golden List
exempts companies from paying a hefty bank guarantee. To qualify,
companies must abide by certain best practices regarding labor
rights in line with international standards. END NOTE. To date,
the new Golden List has not been fully implemented.

Labor Law Still Pending but Anti-TIP Law Moves Forward
-------------- --------------


11. (SBU) In addition to the four amendments to the labor law that
parliament approved in July 2008, the MOL had planned, but
ultimately declined, to submit additional amendments to the labor
law to parliament this session (ref B). MOL officials indicated
that in light of competing priorities, only a limited number of laws
could be submitted to parliament in one session, and the GOJ decided
to place a higher priority on getting the TIP Law approved. The
lower house approved the draft TIP Law on January 25, which now
awaits senate approval.

Recruitment Agency Regulations to Reform Hiring
-------------- --


12. (SBU) According to the Recruitment Agency Association (RAA),
Jordan currently has 96 recruitment agencies, many of which are
small operations. MOL has drafted new regulations regarding the
requirements for licensing recruitment agencies, which are currently
out for comment with the private sector. New provisions stipulate a
JD 100,000 ($141,242) bank guarantee (vice the current JD 50,000
($70,621)),JD 30,000 ($42,372) capital requirement, at least five
working staff, and suitable office space. The GOJ hopes that the
new regulations might force some of the smaller operations to merge
or consolidate. The RAA has stated that only ten of the recruitment
agencies would be able to meet the new provisions, and believes that
the new regulations will help a new recruitment agency, founded by
the General Federation of Trade Unions and several women's group,
monopolize the market. The RAA has sued the Minister and Ministry
of Labor in the Court of First Instance for unlawfully assisting the
new agency (septel).

Source Countries to Cooperate on Employer Database
-------------- --------------


13. (U) DCM hosted a January 15 lunch with representatives from the
Philippine, Indonesian, Sri Lankan, and Bangladeshi embassies in
Jordan to discuss labor issues with a focus on domestic workers.
The Indonesian, Bangladeshi, and Filipino embassies have decided to
establish a formal mechanism to discuss labor issues and share
information, perhaps through establishment of a joint database that
would track bad employers. Participants agreed to expand this
coordination to include the U.S. and other source country embassies.


Visit Amman's Classified Website at:
http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/nea/amman

Beecroft