Nurses call off strike after assurance from management

AMMAN — The Jordan Nurses and Midwives Association and other health syndicates on Sunday suspended their strike demanding improved working conditions and increased pay at the University of Jordan (UJ) Hospital until a committee formed to look into its demands issues its recommendations.

The Association Chief Khaled Rababaa told The Jordan Times on Sunday that during a meeting with UJ President Abdul Karim Qudah it was agreed that two of the association’s demands would be met.

The first demand calls for appointing associate nurses as registered nurses with benefits, but under the condition that associate nursing vacancies are available and the applicants are eligible for the position. 

The committee will review nurses’ cases and decide if they are eligible to become registered nurses on a case by case basis. 

An agreement was also reached to reinstate paying incentives in advance as stipulated in the UJ Hospital Board’s September decision, under the condition that the article in this regard is first shown to the hospital’s board for approval.

Explaining this point, Rababaa said that until 2013, incentives with different percentages were paid to registered nurses, associate nurses and midwives, but anyone who was hired after 2013 did not receive those. As of September, these incentives will be paid once more to everyone.   

The health syndicates and the UJ president agreed to form a committee to study the remaining demands, which Rababaa said require amendments to laws.

He said both sides also dropped all legal measures taken against each other, which means any nurses who have been arbitrarily fired were rehired. 

The strike that started on Tuesday, and continued on Saturday, excluded the emergency, dialysis and pharmaceutical wards.