Jordan’s “Times” reported that on February 11, the Jordanian Ministry of Labor decided that the minimum wage standard of 150 Jordans, which was implemented nationwide in January 2009, would not be implemented in Qualified Industrial Zones (QIZ). The Director of the Investigation Department of the Ministry of Labor said that although the minimum wage standards for domestic and foreign workers in QIZ have not been modified, according to the Ministry of Labor, the General Union of Textile Industry (GTUWTI), and the Jordan Textile and Garment Exporters Union on January 8 (JGATE) In a memorandum initialed by three parties, employers in QIZ agreed to give domestic workers a JD 40 subsidy as food and accommodation subsidy. Currently, free food and accommodation are only provided to foreign workers, and emphasized that increasing the subsidy will make up for the gap between domestic and foreign workers in the labor market. The wage gap will help reduce the loss of domestic workers within the QIZ. The director of the Department of Legal Affairs of the Ministry of Labor said that the memorandum will urge employers in QIZ and GTUWTI to sign separate wage-related agreements, but so far no agreement has been signed.
The chairman of GTUWTI criticized the decision of the Ministry of Labor, pointing out that the government should give priority to the interests of Jordanian workers and emphasize the spirit of the constitution. According to the constitution, the rights and obligations of all Jordanians are equal, and the Ministry of Labor should not discriminate between domestic and foreign workers.
The Jordanian government decided to raise the minimum wage from 110 Jordanians to 150 Jordanians in October 2008.
According to data from the Jordanian Ministry of Labor and JGATE, there are approximately 46,000 workers in QIZ, including 11,600 Jordanians.
