It seems that Jordan is following in the footsteps of some Gulf countries by attempting to localize its labor force. Some of the Gulf countries that followed this example include Saudi Arabia and Qatar both of which are constantly working to "Saudi-ize" and "Qatar-ize" their workforce. Here is an excerpt from the recent report:
The government will impose "a significant increase" on the fees levied on foreign workers applying for annual work permits in an effort to raise employment levels among native Jordanians, a source at the labour ministry said on Monday. Simultaneously, the ministry plans to train Jordanian workers in order for them to better compete with their expatriate counterparts. "The ministry is keen to enhance workers’ competitiveness and performance through its programmes and schemes," said Labour Minister Bassem Salem. According to a ministry report issued last week, 15.5 percent of working-age Jordanians -– some 200,000 people -– are currently unemployed. This includes approximately 144,000 males and 55,000 females. Source: [IRIN]
I wonder if this new approach has anything to do with the recent National Labor Committees report on the status of foreign workers in Jordan’s QIZ’s.
http://www.alghad.jo/?news=96286
the above article in alghad “independent” newspaper is a fine example of how the security situationin addition to the tried and proven politcs of division have always served a very useful purpose in distracting jordanians from the massive economic and political failures. Right in the middle of an article on poverty in jordan, the subject of al-qaeda in injected with no context whatsoever. Amaturish indeed, but this is the concept behind it: more jordanians are becoming more dirt-poor, but thank god our government is catching those nasty hamas and al-qaeda terrorists. so sure you might be starving dear average jordanian, but now you can go to bed, unemplyoed and hungry, but safe.
ANON:
“I think if some Jordanians chose to be lazy and not work they won’t change if this policy takes place.”
Why don’t you go get yourseld a 100JD/month job then tell me how satisfied you are with it and for how long you can last living in Jordan on this income, espicially after the arrival of Iraqi refugees and the resulting rent crisis.
In a country where connections and not merit put you in collage and get you a 1000JD/month job, I don’t dare speak of lazy Jordanians. I speak of corrupt people who suck the blood out of the economy leaving 95% of Jordanians to compete with poor Asians over 100JD/month jobs.
What we need in Jordan is more compassion for the underclass (the overwhelming majority of Jordanians) not callous indifference.
soon we’ll have marches for egyptian workers in Amman screaming “si se peude”
I am afraid there is a fundamental difference between a job in a gulf country and a job in jordan: oil. Saudization of jobs, for example, means to take a good job away from a Jordanian or Palestinian and to give it to a Saudi, while low-wage jobs will go to Asian workers.
Fact is, the government can jordanize all it wants, few Jordanians can afford to live on 120 JD. there are many reasons why a Bangladeshi will find 120JD to be a great salary while a Jordanian will not. The primary factor being cost of living. An Asian worker in Jordan is often housed and fed and transported to and from the work site. Much of his or her income will be transferred back to his home village where 100JD can go a long way. That will never be the case for a Jordanian worker. So as you can see, this policy is doomed to failure.
Want another worse-case scenario for Jordanians? Naturalization with Israel. Soon as gulf countries naturalize with Israel, scores of Israelis will fill high-paying jobs, driving Jordanians into mid and low paying jobs. I guess you have to thank the Jordanian and Egyptian governments for that, since now it’s acceptable for an Arab country to make peace with Israel while the killings and the occupation continue.
Soon, a Jordanian will be lucky to find a work permit in Bolivia.
Love our governments.
That is a big big mistake. If we want to improve the economy and catch up with the developed countries we need to do it the way certain Arab countries did such as UAE and Qatar.
You have to understand that there is a huge difference when you say Qatarize and Jordanize. Qatar has a very small population and they are mostly looking at putting locals in high positions like the UAE did. We have a population of almost 6 million. It will never work.
We need the talented and hardworking expats such as asians that have helped the strong economies in the Middle East flourish.
In addition, I think if some Jordanians chose to be lazy and not work they won’t change if this policy takes place.
I am a big supporter of a free market and allowing expats come and compete with the locals to a certain extent.
I’ve always been surprised by the presence of foreign workers in Jordan. Somehow it doesn’t seem to fit the profile of state’s that have them.
Thank you for the link DM. It looks interesting.
Natasha,
I have a friend who works at Brandeis University in Waltham, MA and she was telling me that Prince Hassan bin Talal from Jordan gave the commencement address at the graduation. I don’t know if you are familiar with Brandeis, but it is a Jewish university. He spoke on working together in life despite differences. They posted his speech on the university’s website. Here’s the link if you are interested in reading it. http://my.brandeis.edu/news/item?news_item_id=105048