Labour Ministry levies fines on firms that do not pay March salaries

AMMAN — In accordance with Defence Order No. 6 of 2020, the Ministry of Labour on Wednesday decided to levy fines on a number of institutions that have not paid their employees March salaries despite having the financial capacity to do so.

Defence Order No. 6, issued under Defence Law No. 13 of 1992, stipulates that all workers in private sector institutions and establishments or any other entity subject to the Labour Law are entitled to their regular wages for the period from March 18, 2020 to March 31, 2020.

The defence order, activated by the prime minister, aims to protect the rights of workers in various economic sectors amid the lockdown imposed to contain the coronavirus outbreak.

The ministry’s spokesperson, Ghaida Awamleh, in a statement carried by the Jordan News Agency, Petra, said that “all the institutions that were fined are capable of disbursing salaries to their employees and do not have an excuse to leave them without an income”.

Awamleh highlighted the social and economic protection programmes offered by the Central Bank of Jordan and the Social Security Corporation, Petra reported.

Calling on employers to pay due salaries, the spokesperson said that the ministry will refer “another list of violators” that did not pay March and April salaries after examining the statuses of these establishments.