Travel agents stage sit-in to protest airlines’ ticketing policies

AMMAN — Jordanian travel agents on Sunday organised a sit-in to demand more coordination with airlines and protest "unfair" incentives for international ticketing offices.

Jordan Travel Agencies Association President Mohammad Samih said that airlines, especially national ones, have been turning a deaf ear to their demand, adding  that airlines have stopped or lowered commissions, for national travel agencies, while continuing to grant offers and incentives to international agents.

He told The Jordan Times that travel agents were invited to meet with officials at the Royal Jordanian Airlines premises in Amman after the sit-in, in order to discuss their demands.

A committee from the national carrier will convene and inform travel agents about the outcomes of the meeting within two days, Samih said, adding that "the agents will wait to see what happens".

Hadi Abu Saud, a travel agent, said that airplane tickets are being sold to individuals or large companies abroad with preferable prices and incentives, claiming that local agents now “cannot sell tickets as there is no margin left for profit”.

"International airlines have started cancelling incentives for us after seeing the local peers doing so,” Abu Saud said, noting that customers can now buy tickets online for lower prices, which has led to a shunning of local agents.

There are 300 travel agencies in Jordan that sell local and international airline tickets, according to Abu Saud, who pointed out that they decided to communicate with the airlines first to avoid tension rather than resorting to the judiciary.

The travel agent added that the association will call for more sit-ins until their demands are fulfilled.