PM Razzaz issues Defence Order (6)

Jordan

Published: 2020-04-08 19:40

Last Updated: 2024-03-17 20:44


PM Razzaz issues Defence Order (6)
PM Razzaz issues Defence Order (6)

Prime Minister and Minister of Defence Dr. Omar Razzaz has issued the Defence Order No. (6) for the year 2020 during a press briefing today.

Following is the full text of the Order:

"Issued in accordance with the Defence Law No. (13) of 1992

Since the main goal of the curfew is to protect the lives and health of Jordanians, make possible efforts to take the necessary measures to reduce the negative economic impacts on private sector companies and employees and to enable the economy to recover after the end of the current crisis, while studying the possibility of gradually allowing some economic sectors to resume their work according to public health and safety regulations and national priorities, I decided to issue the following defence order:

First: A- All workers in private sector institutions and establishments or any other entity subject to the Labor Law deserve to receive their wages for the period from March 18 to March 31, provided that workers in the sectors excluded from the cabinet's suspencion decision don't have the right to ask for additional pay, unless they are assigned to work overtime in accordance with the provisions of Article (59) of Labor Law No. (8) for the year 1996.

B- For applying paragraph (A) of this order, paragraph (B) of Article (59) of Labor Law No. (8) for the year 1996 shall be suspended in relation to legal provisions related to work on official holidays only.

Second: A- The sectors, institutions, or establishments in the private sector or any other entity subject to the Labor Law that will be authorized to resume their work should obtain approval from the Minister of Industry, Trade and Supply, the Minister of Labor and Health and the relevant minister collectively.

B - For the purposes of the works of Paragraph (A) of this item, the Ministers of Labor, Industry, Trade and Supply and Health are authorized to define the basis, procedures and conditions for obtaining approval according to instructions issued by them collectively for this purpose.

Third: To facilitate the mechanisms of work "remotely" in whole or in part and to enable the economic sectors in these circumstances to resume their work and production, I decided the following: -

A - Private sector establishments and any other entity subject to the Labor Law shall resume their work "remotely" in whole or in part.

B- The provisions of Articles (3), (5), (8), (10) and (12) of Flexible Labor Law No. (22) of 2017 shall be suspended for the purposes of implementing paragraph (a) of this item.

C- The Minister of Labor is authorized to take the necessary measures and procedures to organize flexible work "remotely" according to instructions issued for this purpose.

Fourth: As of April 1, 2020, the wages of workers in private sector establishments and institutions and in any other body subject to the Labor Law are determined as follows:

A - Workers who perform their work in the workplace deserve their full wages, provided that it is permissible to agree, on the will of the worker, to reduce his/her wages, provided that the amount of the reduction does not exceed 30% of the wage and that this option is not used unless the reduction includes the salaries of the high management of the institution.

B - Workers who perform their work "full time" remotely at the institutions and establishments authorized to work, institutions covered by the suspension decision or not authorized to work deserve to receive their salaries. Workers who perform their work "part-time" remotely at the authorized establishments and facilities, those covered by the suspension decision or institutions that are not authorized to work deserve to receive their wages according to the actual working hours and not less than the minimum amount per hours or according to the wages stipulated in Paragraph (e) of this item, whichever is higher.

C - The workers stipulated in Paragraphs (A) and (B) of this item who are assigned to work overtime are entitled to additional pay in accordance with the provisions of Paragraph (A) of Article (59) of Labor Law No. (8) of 1996 only.

D- For the purposes of the works of Paragraphs (A) and (B) of this item, Paragraph (B) of Article (59) of Labor Law No. (8) of 1996 shall be suspended in relation to legal provisions related to work on public holidays only.

E - The employers of the establishments and institutions authorized to work "part-time" with regard to workers who are not assigned to work, institutions covered by the suspension decision and those that are not authorized to work, have the right to submit a request to the Minister of Labor to allow them to pay at least 50% of the value of the normal wage for these workers, provided that it's below the minimum wage.

F - The foundations and conditions according to which employers are allowed to pay no less than 50% of the value of the original wage are determined according to instructions issued by the Minister of Labor for this purpose.

H - The provisions of Article (50) of the Labor Law No. (8) of 1996 shall be suspended for the purposes of implementing paragraphs (e) and (f) of this item.

Fifth: An employer who is unable to pay wages as mentioned in item (4) above in private sector institutions and establishments, any other body subject to the Labor Law and authorized to work, or those covered by the suspension have the right submit a request to a joint committee formed by all the Ministers of Industry, Trade, and Supply and Labor to completely stop work at his institution or facility and to stop work contracts for all workers. The employer must take no action in this regard except after obtaining the approval of that committee and must attach to the request a statement showing the names of workers, the forms of their contracts, duration, work hours and the amount of their wages according to what is registered for the Social Security Corporation (SSC). The issuance of the decision approving the suspension shall result in the following:

A- The employer whose work was completely suspended in his establishment is not permitted to perform any work or any activity during the suspension period.

B - The contractual relationship between the employer and the worker shall not be interrupted during the suspension period, and the employer is not obligated to pay the worker’s wages during this period.

C- The suspension period is not considered as part of the period of the employment contract.

D - All financial and contractual obligations incurred by the employer remain valid during the suspension period, except for the employees' wages.

E- The employer in private sector establishments and insitutions or any entity subject to the Labor Law, shall not benefit from any economic protection programs for the private sector from the date of suspension.

F- A signal to prevent the disposal of movable and immovable property belonging to the establishment shall be made during the suspension period by a decision of the committee.

Sixth: A- Subject to the provisions of Paragraph (e) of item (5) above, the employer in private sector institutions and establishments and any entity subject to the Labor Law, covered by the suspension decision and not authorized to work, has the right to benefit from economic protection programs in accordance with the conditions established for each of them.

B - The government works to grant incentives to employers who are obligated to pay workers' wages in full since the the Defence Law was activated and until the end of its implementation. In addition, they will benefit from economic protection programs in accordance with the conditions set for each of them.

Seventh: In light of its capabilities, the government seeks to provide the necessary support to secure the basic life needs of Jordanian day laborers who are not involved in the social security, provided that they register in social security according to a mechanism to be determined later.

Eighth: A- The employer may not exert pressure on the workers to compel them to resign or lay them off except in accordance with the provisions of paragraphs (c) and (d) of Article (21) and paragraphs (a, g, h, i) From Article (28) of Labor Law No. (8) of 1996.

B- For the purposes of implementing paragraph (a) of this item, Article (23) and the provisions of paragraphs (b, c, d, e, and f) of Article (28) of Labor Law No. (8) of 1996 shall be suspended and the Minister of Labor shall be authorized to take measures and procedures necessary to implement paragraph (e) thereof.

C- Every employer who has forced any employee to resign or laid any off in cases other than those stipulated in Paragraph (A) of this item and during the period between March 18 and until the date of the issuance of Defence Order No. (6) for the year 2020, should bring them back to work within a week of the date the defence order was published in the Official Gazette.

Ninth: Every pledge, agreement or document in which the worker assigns any of his rights since March 18 is considered invalid and is not legally recognized, and the employer must take the necessary measures to cancel it within a week from the date of publishing the defence order in the Official Gazette.

Tenth: A- The defence order and the instructions issued pursuant thereto shall be reviewed on a monthly basis or whenever the interest requires that, according to reports issued by the Prime Minister for this purpose.

B - The foundations and conditions for the employer to benefit from each economic protection program are determined by the competent official authority, according to instructions issued for this purpose.

C- The Prime Minister issues the necessary communiqués and orders to implement what came with this defense order.

Eleventh: A- Any person who violates any of the procedures for obtaining the approval referred to in item (2) of this defence order shall be punished by closing the violating establishment for a period of 60 days.

B - Anyone who violates any other provision of this defence order and the communiqués issued by the Prime Minister or the ministers charged with pursuant thereto shall be punished with imprisonment for a period of three years and a fine of JD3,000.

C- The penalties stipulated in this defence order do not prevent the worker from claiming his labor rights in accordance with the provisions of Labor Law No. (8) for the year. 1996.