Jordanian QIZ labour layoffs less likely to affect Jordanian workers
AMMAN - Potential Qualifying Industrial Zone (QIZ) layoffs due to the current economic downturn are less likely to affect Jordanian workers, trade union officials said on Monday. The global financial crisis and a drop in demand has forced QIZ companies to lower production, with several firms applying to the Labour…
Egytex News Desk
Egytex
Jordanian employees in the sector, who constitute less than one-third of the QIZ workforce, however, will have priority for keeping their positions, he stressed.
For example, one QIZ firm seeking to restructure has 22 Jordanians in its 1,000-employee factory. If approved, the layoffs will be at the expense of guest workers whose contracts are expiring, according to Emrani.
"The short-term impact of the financial crisis on Jordanian workers will be minimal," Emrani said, noting that the number of Jordanians serving in QIZs has been dropping in recent years from a high of 23,387 workers in 2004 to 10,467 last year. The number of expatriate labourers, meanwhile, increased from 24,749 in 2004 to over 38,000 in 2006.
In order to change their terms and conditions, QIZ firms must refer to a committee comprising representatives from the Labour Ministry, the General Federation of Trade Unions and the Chambers of Industry and Commerce which examine companies' requests and presents recommendations to the labour minister for action.
According to the Labour Ministry, nine garment factories within the QIZs have so far applied to the committee for such changes, which could include layoffs.
From the Egytex news archive, first published on 12 February 2009. Figures and names are as reported at the time.
