Amman: The Lower House of Parliament approved a draft law amending the Labor Law for 2024, completing the endorsement of Articles 9 through 18 while reopening Article 8.
According to Jordan News Agency, the House reversed its previous stance that permitted the annual dismissal of up to 5 percent of workers and rejected any provision allowing worker terminations. The decision was made during a session on Monday, chaired by House Speaker Ahmed Safadi and attended by Prime Minister Jafar Hassan and members of the government team.
Regarding Article 9, the House approved the Parliamentary Labor Committee's recommendation to replace Article 65 of the original law. The new provision grants workers 14 days of paid sick leave annually, extendable for another 14 days with full pay if the worker is hospitalized or has a certified medical report. This replaces the previous stipulation, which required institutions with more than 20 employees to rely on a special medical committee for approving extended sick leave.
The House also approved amendments to Article 10, introducing a new paragraph to Article 66 of the original law. The amendment grants workers three days of paid leave upon the death of a first-degree relative.
Under the revised Article 11, the House amended Article 70 of the original law by replacing the term "ten weeks" with "ninety consecutive days" for maternity leave. The original provision granted women 10 weeks of paid maternity leave, with at least six weeks allocated post-childbirth.
As for Article 12, the House adopted changes to Article 72, lowering the maximum age for employer-provided childcare from five years to four years and 18 months. Employers with at least 15 workers whose children fall within this age range must provide childcare facilities at no cost, supervised by qualified staff. Employers can also collaborate to establish joint childcare centers in the same geographical area.
The House further approved Article 13, which removes the term "occupational diseases" from the title of Chapter Ten of the original law.
Revisiting Article 8, lawmakers overturned their earlier approval of a clause that would have allowed employers to dismiss up to 5 percent of workers annually without requiring approval from the Ministry of Labor. Instead, the House rejected any measure permitting worker dismissals. Previously, the amendment allowed terminations under economic or technical conditions, provided that the Ministry of Labor was notified.
The House had previously approved Articles 4 through 8 on March 5 and Articles 1 through 3 on February 26.
The amendments aim to align the Labor Law with the Social Security Law by recognizing occupational diseases as workplace injuries and unifying medical standards for determining work-related injuries. They also seek to ensure greater worker protection, regulate foreign labor, enhance protections for working women during pregnancy and maternity leave, and establish clear procedures for handling expatriate workers who leave their jobs in violation of labor regulations.