The emergence of the garment industry has presented Jordan with challenges in assuring the effective application of local labour laws and international labour standards. In response, the Government of Jordan has developed a broad programme of action to improve labour administration and compliance. An important component is Better Work Jordan.
A partnership between the International Labour Organization (ILO) and the International Finance Corporation (IFC), Better Work Jordan was launched in February 2008. The programme aims to improve the competitiveness of the garment industry by improving compliance with Jordanian labour law and the ILO’s core labour standards and enhancing economic performance at the enterprise level.
This inaugural report illustrates the findings of assessments carried out between March 2009 and February 2010 by Better Work Jordan in 15 factories, which employ a total of 13,338 workers of the approximately 43,000 in the industry. The sample is characterised by factories employing an average of 888 regular workers, 75% of whom are migrant workers and 56% of whom are women (on average).
The findings constitute a baseline for factories participating in the programme. The data collected illustrate non-compliance with labour standards according to eight clusters: four based on ILO core labour standards (child labour, forced labour, discrimination, and freedom of association and collective bargaining) and four based on national law regarding working conditions (compensation, contracts and human resources, occupational safety and health, and working time).
Please read here the statement of the PAC about this report.