Persons with disabilities face huge hurdles to employment in Kingdom — JLW

AMMAN — Nearly 84 per cent of persons with disabilities of working age in Jordan are unemployed, reflecting the continuous weak employment of persons with disabilities in the Kingdom, according to a paper issued by the Jordan Labour Watch (JLW) on the International Day of Persons with Disabilities, which occurred on December 3rd. 

The paper, prepared by the JLW of the Phenix Centre for Economic and Informatics Studies, in cooperation with Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung, indicates that there is an absence of appropriate work environments for people with disabilities. 

The paper added that the civil service system has presented obstacles to people with disabilities obtaining public jobs. 

Article 43 of Jordan’s constitution says: “Whoever is appointed to any job should be free from diseases and physical and mental disabilities that prevent them from performing their job, in which they will be appointed according to a decision from a competent medical reference”.

The Jordanian Labour Law does not require employers to provide accommodating measures for workers with disabilities, according to the paper. 

In regard to the private sector, the paper also showed that a large number of workers with disabilities suffer from difficult conditions due to the low quality of jobs, lower wage rate, the absence of job stability, and the lack of employer confidence in them, despite their productivity compared with their colleagues. 

The paper pointed out that the lack of elevators, audio systems and Braille signs in offices, the unavailability of suitable public transportation and the inability to electronically access information have prevented many people with disabilities from entering the labour market.

Director of the Phenix Centre for Economic and Informatics Studies Ahmad Awad said that generally, the work and life environment in the Kingdom does not have the tools to facilitate the inclusion of the people with disabilities.

“The government should strengthen oversight on the private sector and municipalities to provide facilities for people with disabilities and should also integrate them into the education system,” Awad told The Jordan Times over the phone on Saturday.

According to the DoS, around 79 per cent of people with disabilities do not receive any form of education.

“The large majority of people with disabilities do not enroll in education; therefore, they are not qualified for the labour market. The education system is also not prepared for them,” Awad noted.

Director of the “Equal Opportunities” Unit at the Higher Council for the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (HCD) Rezan Al Kurdi noted that the employers’ stereotypes held against people with disabilities is often the main reason they do not get employed. 

Kurdi told The Jordan Times on Saturday that many people with disabilities who are educated and hold masters degrees often get rejected from working in their field.

Kurdi called for the necessity of implementing what was stated in paragraphs E and F of Article 25 of Law No. 20 of 2017, relating to the employment of persons with disabilities.

Institutions should employ at least one person with disabilities within its vacancies and if the number of total employees exceeds 50, four per cent of the vacancies shall be allocated for persons with disabilities, as determined by the Ministry of Labour.

Kurdi also stressed the need of supervisory institutions, such as the Ministry of Labour, Social Security and other relevant civil society institutions, to ensure the strengthening of the commitment of the public and private sectors with the Labour Law.

“The HCD developed a complaints system on our website to stay updated with the workers with disabilities and receive any complaint they have, which helps in improving the workplace environment for them,” she added.