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AMMAN — Labour Minister Nidal Bataineh on Wednesday decided to stop the issuance and renewal of work permits for non-Jordanian members of teaching faculties at public and private universities in the Kingdom.

The decision was made following a meeting between the minister and a number of unemployed Jordanian youth who hold PhDs or educational qualifications equivalent to an associate or assistant professor across various fields, according to the Jordan News Agency, Petra. 

After convening with his team following the meeting, Bataineh made the decision and instructed its circulation across Labour Ministry departments, to come into effect as of October 3.  Applications for permit issuance or renewal for faculty members of universities and colleges will be reviewed individually, Bataineh said, noting that such requests will be denied if a Jordanian can fill the same position.  

AMMAN — Labour Minister Nidal Bataineh on Wednesday attended the launch of a job training programme titled “Path” at Al Hussein Technical University, sponsored by the British Council.

The initiative was developed by the British Council, the UK Sector Skills Council for Science, Engineering and Manufacturing Technologies and a group of pioneering Jordanian companies, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

During the launch, Bataineh stressed the importance of the programme in bridging the gap between theoretical learning and practical application, which enables students to be more efficient and effective in the work environment.

The programme, which is the “first of its kind in the Kingdom”, is set to have 20 student participants from various academic disciplines, Petra reported. British Council Deputy Director May Abu Hamdia hailed the programme as a “national success” since it is based on partnerships with national industries seeking to increase production and competition.

AMMAN —  Two Jordanian brothers detained in Libya for more than a month returned to the Kingdom on Wednesday, according to a Foreign Ministry statement.

As a result of Foreign Ministry and police efforts, Alaa Jamal Mahmoud Abu Erjie and his brother Marwan Jamal Mahmoud Abu Erjie were released, Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Sufian Qudah said.

He conveyed his well wishes to the family of the freed Jordanians.

AMMAN — The Western Harra Survey (WHS), started in 2015, has been investigating the north-east of the Azraq basin, noted a British archaeologist at a lecture titled “Back from the Black Desert” held on Tuesday at the French Institute in Jabel Luweibdeh.

That arid region is paved with basalt boulders that for centuries have been used for construction, noted Stefan Smith from the University of Gent, adding that the WHS is investigating prehistoric patterns of settlements by studying the human occupation and environment of the western edges and interior of the Black Desert (eastern Jordan). 

“The desert covers 55,000 sq.km of basaltic plateau from south of Syria across the northeast of Jordan and northwest of Saudi Arabia,” Smith said, adding that in 2019 the WHS associated with Institut Français du Proche-Orient in Amman (Ifpo).

The Black Desert drew the interest of scholars back in 1920 when the first aerial surveys were conducted by Percy Maitland and L.Rees who operated between Baghdad and Cairo as airmen, Smith said.

In more recent time scholars like Gary Rollefson, Peter Akkermans, Tobias Richeter and Bernd Mueller-Neuhof run their own research in that region, he added. 

“There is a long period of occupation of the region from at least the Epipaleolithic period [12,500 BC] to present day, and particularly well attested from the Late Neolithic to Early Bronze Age [circa 6,600-2,850],” Smith said.

 He added that a variety of sites and morphology allowed scholars to categorise them as meandering walls, kites, wheels, pendants and enclosures.

In order to survive, inhabitants of the Black Desert made hunting infrastructures in a form of thousands of “desert kites”, traps for catching animal herds, especially gazelles, Smith noted, adding that many sites are barely studied.

Using satellite imagery, researchers mapped pathways in Eastern Desert, said Marie-Laure Chambrade from the University of Lyon, noting that there are different routes: pre-modern, sheep and modern vehicle tracks.

Talking about regional ramifications Chambrade outlined extension of burin (a  flint tool with a chisel point) sites, Dabba marble, shells from the Mediterranean Sea and Red Sea, ritual practices in southeast Jordan and advance of dolmens.

Chambrade said for the second phase of the WHS, the team plans to study the ancient circulation of people through the desert, map the paths, start spatial and statistical analyses, investigate territory of the desert, as well as collaborating with Jordanian colleagues. 

AMMAN — The Greater Amman Municipality (GAM) on Wednesday launched its annual campaign, raising awareness about public safety.

GAM, through various communication channels, called for checking of the pumping system in shops, especially those that are on the street level, urging traders to take precautionary measures while storing their goods in underground warehouses. 

The municipality urged project owners and contractors to secure construction material and ensure rainwater will not cause any erosion that could in turn cause closures of drainage lines, according to the statement.

In case of severe rainfall or snowing, GAM instructed the public to not connect their rain gutters to the sewage networks to avoid flooding of manholes. 

The campaign also addressed negative practices, including throwing garbage randomly, which causes closures of drainages. 

GAM highlighted the issue of climate change and its impact, the statement noted. 

Earlier in June, the municipality launched a plan to address the effects of climate change in cooperation with the Ministry of Environment and support from the World Bank. 

The plan determined the practical steps that would contribute to reducing the impact of climate change.

The municipality called for unifying the efforts of the concerned authorities to deal with the phenomenon. 

GAM voiced its readiness to receive notes during winter on its hotlines 065359970 and 065359971. 

Also on Wednesday, the committee concerned with the safety of dams, in cooperation with the national committee of dams, held a meeting headed by Water Minister Raed Abul Saud, in which they discussed the readiness of water facilities to deal with the upcoming rainy season, following a visit to all the main dams in the Kingdom.

The minister voiced the “will” of the water sector to complete several projects related to construction of dams in valleys and deserts, as well as ponds and water borders in dadia areas, to create new sources that would help preserve the current strategic water storage from overuse, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

AMMAN — The Ministry of Education said that classes were resumed on Tuesday in 1,014 public schools across the Kingdom, "significantly" breaking teachers' nationwide strike, which has entered its fourth week. 

The ministry said that a total of 71,758 students returned to their schools on Tuesday, adding that legal and administrative proceedings will be taken against school principals and teachers who refused to receive students. 

Meanwhile, the Legislative and Opinion Bureau on Tuesday declared the teachers' strike "illegal", warning that teachers can lose their jobs should they insist on moving forward with the work stoppage they started on September 8. 

Citing the Civil Service Bylaw, the bureau said that public workers failing to show up to work for ten consecutive days could lose their jobs, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported. 

The bureau also explained that teachers who come to school and refrain from giving classes will also be subject to legal proceedings, including a pay cut for the period of time out on strike, according to Petra. 

The strike is protected by the law as long as it is not harming people's interests, the bureau said, explaining that teachers' ongoing strike deprives students from their right to education and violates Education Law, the Jordan Teachers Association (JTA) Law and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights.

Under its law, the JTA is committed to protecting students’ right to education and resorting to legal approaches, mainly dialogue, to defend teachers’ demands.

The Education Ministry has sent circulars to public school principals across the Kingdom, instructing them to invite students to return to their schools. 

The circular is in compliance with the Administrative Court’s ruling, issued on Sunday, ordering an “immediate” suspension to teachers’ nationwide strike following a lawsuit filed by parents.

The government has offered to grant teachers a pay raise ranging between JD24 and JD31 to take effect on October 1 should the strike end, but the JTA refused, insisting on their demand of a 50-per cent pay raise.

The JTA called on its members to move forward with their strike, which it insists is “legal”. 

In a rally on Tuesday, JTA Vice President Nasser Nawasreh said that the syndicate has plans to make up missed classes.    

AMMAN — The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) has allocated around 8.4 million euros to develop and improve the cesspit known as the “Pepsi Pool” in Rusaifa, under the supervision of the Greater Amman Municipality (GAM), with the aim of remedying environmental contamination, according to Rusaifa Mayor Osama Haymour.

Half of the allocated amount will be a loan to GAM, and the other half will be a grant to improve the Pepsi Pool, in addition to 13 million euros to be provided by the EBRD to address environmental problems  that emerged  40 years ago, Haymour told The Jordan Times on Sunday.

“Rusaifa Municipality’s vision is to make Rusaifa a better place by finding radical solutions to the Pepsi Pool to protect its people from the health hazards that have affected them over the years,”  he added.

The project, he continued, will implement  micro tunneling techniques while extending drainage lines that have adequate diameters compatible with hydraulic studies to 1.5 kilometres. GAM will supervise the project and will drain rainwater through a box culvert design.

“Currently, feasibility and environmental studies are being conducted to turn the area into a park that serves the residents of Rusaifa,” Haymour said. 

“The Pepsi Pool area is 104 dunums and it suffers from severe contamination due to the stagnant water and illegal connection of sewage networks.”

Engicon, a global engineering consulting firm, was assigned to conduct engineering and technical studies to complement GAM’s procedures and to “find a radical solution to the problem, develop a work plan for GAM to implement and prepare the technical documents needed”, Ne’hma Qatanani, executive engineering director at GAM told The Jordan Times on Monday.

Qatanani added that the consulting firm submitted the final draft of the study, which was presented at a meeting on Monday, during which problem analysis, hydrometeorological studies, geotechnical studies and soil characteristic examinations were discussed.

During the meeting, the consultant proposed four drainage systems, which vary according to different criteria, such as topography, obstacles and technical capabilities, duration of project implementation and cost.

AMMAN — The Ministry of Agriculture cautioned farmers not to pick or sell unripe citrons, a dominant type of fruit in the winter season.

“We want farmers not to rush, especially since we included citrons under the 22 competitively protected types of fruits and vegetables, meaning that we do not import them from anywhere just to ensure that local farmers are not in competition with anyone,” Lawrence Majali, Spokesperson for the Ministry, told The Jordan Times over the phone.

Majali said that the ministry’s inspection offices will be testing the ripeness of the citrons, particularly pummelos and tangerines, as they will be the first to be ready.

In December 2018, farmers protested the “flooding” of Jordanian markets with Syrian citrons, saying it was “unfair competition” because Syrian produce was cheaper.

“Now that farmers do not have to fear that their produce might not be sold, there is no reason for early picking. We were more lenient last year because we knew that farmers wanted to get a good price before the Syrian produce came in,” Majali said.

In a statement, the ministry encouraged farmers to “be patient” because that will “be the best way to ensure the best taste, price, and amount of produce”.

AMMAN — The Queen Rania Teacher Academy (QRTA) on Tuesday issued a statement refuting “false and non-objective” reports that were circulated on social media. 

The academy said that these claims are meant to link the academy to the teachers’ strike, affirming that it is a non-profit company established in 2009 in response to the Kingdom’s national need to train teachers in accordance with the best international practices, according to the statement carried by the Jordan News Agency, Petra. 

On its relation with the Ministry of Education, the academy affirmed that its role is “solely focused on training and rehabilitating teachers within a specific programme that has nothing to do with the ministry’s policies in the vocational field or otherwise”. 

The academy also said that it does not own any lands or real estate property, including the land on which its building is located, which is owned entirely by the University of Jordan, the statement said.

The academy refuted claims that it resorts to “favouritism” to employ its graduates at the Education Ministry, stating that only 10 per cent — 1,220 teachers out of a total of 12,500 teachers who have graduated from the academy since 2017 — work at the ministry.

If the ministry sends teachers to the academy of its own volition, it commits them to work for no less than three years in their schools, the statement said, noting that the academy provides a diploma programme in only five education majors out of the 20 majors that the ministry needs.

The academy also refuted claims that it collects JD3,000 from those enrolled in the diploma training programme and denied the report that it takes fees from students sent by the ministry through a scholarship under the condition that the enrolees do not violate the contractual conditions that bind them. 

The funding of the academy comes from donor entities, the statement said, adding that the government does not carry any financial burdens to fund the training programmes. 

AMMAN — Salaried individuals in Jordan constitute about 87 per cent of the total workforce, the Jordan Strategic Forum (JSF), said, citing the Department of Statistics’ 2018 figures.

While the overall nominal monthly wage index increased from 100 points in 2010 to 126.0 points in 2017, the wages of the public sector saw a higher increase than the private sector, the JSF said in a report. 

While the public sector’s wage index increased to 136.8 points, the private sector’s wage index increased to 119.9 points. 

The JSF also noted that wages in the private sector have not kept up with the increase in the cost of living. While the public sector’s mean monthly real wage index increased from 100 points in 2010 to 110.3 points in 2015, and to 114.6 points by the end of 2017, those in the mean real wage index of the private sector, on the other hand, only increased from 100 points in 2010 to 100.5 points in 2017.

This comparison does not take into consideration the wage levels in the public and private sectors.

The public sectors that enjoyed the largest real wage increases are mining and quarrying, transportation and storage, wholesale and retail and water supply, while the private sector’s highest real wage increases are in water supply, real estate, arts and entertainment and other service sectors, the report said.

Public sector employees enjoyed much higher wage increases than their counterparts in the private sector, the report said, adding that wage dynamics (changes) are determined by labour productivity, and factors such as labour supply. 

Greater supply of labour in some sectors limits wage increases and weakens the negotiating strength of such labour, the report said. 

Transportation and storage, wholesale and retail, mining and quarrying, construction, manufacturing, professional, scientific and technical services, and the information communication sector are the largest private sector employers, and witnessed real wage decreases, the JSF said.

Conference Board labour productivity measures, published by the JSF, show labour productivity in Jordan was equal to -1.0 per cent (2010-2017), -1.4 per cent in 2017 and -0.2 per cent in 2018.

To improve real wages, the report said, labour productivity must be increased. This can be accomplished through more capital spending and improving the quality of human capital, the JSF said.

Based on the Central Bank of Jordan’s published data, during the past few years, labour wages have stabilised, remaining around 34 per cent to 35 per cent of GDP, implying that while this number remains constant, it is being distributed among a larger number of employees, indicating an excess supply of labour, and hence, lower labour productivity, the JSF report observed.