'There is further room for amendments to Labour Law'

AMMAN — There are several amendments to the Labour Law that should be treated as top priorities, the Phenix Centre for Economic and Informatics Studies said on Saturday in a statement shared with The Jordan Times. 

The amendments made a few months ago to the law "violated the most basic principles and rights in labour", the statement said, noting that best international practices and standards of labour show that there is room for further "crucial" amendments to the law's articles.

The amendments the centre proposed included redefining "Collective Labour Dispute" in Article 2 of the original law, which deprives "a group of workers" of the right to the necessary tools for ending collective disputes in accordance with the law, restricting the right to unions only.

The statement also called for amending article 40 of the collective work contract, making the period of the contract only two years instead of three, as the centre believes that three years is an "unjustly long" period, especially as unexpected events could change the circumstances during these years.

The Phenix Centre also called for amending section B of article 44, which does not allow a "group of workers" to conduct group negotiations at least twice a year with employers in institutions that have over 25 employees. 

The centre said that this article, as well as section D of article 98, which restricts many workers in the private sector from joining professional associations, “deprives workers of the right to negotiate and to end collective disputes”.   

The aforementioned articles "violate the simplest rights to organising a union that are recognised internationally, and violate the international promise to economic, social and cultural rights that Jordan endorsed 12 years ago", the statement said. 

The statement also referenced article 98, which allows only Jordanians to create unions, and which the centre considers “discriminatory” against expatriates, also in accordance with international laws. 

The Phenix Centre called for resolving articles that violate international laws and are "inconsistent with the constitution", urging that the amendments be in line with international practices and standards.