Labour Ministry to release results of child labour survey

AMMAN — The Labour Ministry said on Tuesday it will "soon" release the results of a field survey identifying the causes of child labour.

The survey was undertaken in cooperation with the Department of Statistics, the International Labour Organisation and the Centre for Strategic Studies and updates previous data, which were based on statistics from 2007, the ministry's spokesperson, Mohammad Khatib, said in a statement.

Studies show that economic factors drive child labour as many children work to increase their family's income, or due to parents' inability to meet their expenses, Khatib said. 

Other factors leading to child labour include children's absence from school and their weak academic achievement, as well as social problems like family disintegration, large families and employers' indifference to hiring children, he added.

Jordan was among the first countries to endorse international agreements to safeguard children against economic exploitation, Khatib noted. The ministry established a child labour department in 1999 and in 2011, Jordan endorsed the national framework to fight child labour.

The Labour Law and other relevant pieces of legislation do not differentiate between guest and national workers in the case of child labour, the official said, adding that children over 16 who work legally under special provisions are dealt with as workers regardless of their gender or nationality.

Khatib said the ministry increased the number of labour inspectors to reach a total of 230, including 23 who are specialised in child labour. 

The ministry carried out some 94,000 inspection visits in 2015, compared to around 84,000 in 2014, he added.