Ammon News -

Labor Minister Nayef Steitieh said Monday that the ministry seeks to regulate the labor market through partnership with the private sector in its various sectors.

Speaking in a meeting with Jordan and Amman Chambers of Industry Board of Directors, Steitieh said that the ministry is cooperating with the private sector to identify the skills needed by various sectors, including the industrial sector, to train the Jordanian workforce on these skills to meet the labor market's needs, which requires not to limit vocational training to specific professions.

The Ministry is keen to activate the role of the sectoral skills councils that were formed in the Vocational and Technical Skills Development Commission. This authority was established under the directives of His Majesty King Abdullah and HRH Prince Al Hussein bin Abdullah, the Crown Prince, Steitieh noted.

He added that the private sector adopt the activation of sectoral skills councils, the number of which has reached 10 so far, and are working to identify the needs of each sector of professions and to identify training needs to provide trained Jordanian labor, stressing that the formation of these councils will be completed soon.

Steitieh explained that the ministry is working to ensure the regulation of the labor market, and seeks to develop the outputs of vocational training centers and institutes in partnership with the private sector to produce a qualified and trained Jordanian workforce that meets the needs of different sectors.

With regard to simplifying and developing the Ministry of Labor’s procedures to serve the private sector, Steitieh stressed that the ministry is currently working on developing an electronic inspection system as part of the smart inspection system for all inspection stakeholders, which will be rolled out soon, in addition to training 170 labor inspectors in partnership with the chambers of industry and commerce.

He said that upon instructions from the Prime Minister, one work permit and residence permit will be issued for nationalities restricted to residency, which has been tested in 4 centers, noting that the ministry is working to complete the automation of its procedures to save the time and effort of employers.

President of the Jordan and Amman Chambers of Industry, Fathi Jaghbir, valued the Ministry of Labor's cooperation with the Chambers of Industry in all issues of interest to the industrial sector, stressing the sector’s keenness to prioritize Jordanians in factories employment, with the need to align the outputs of vocational education with the needs of the local market.

He warned against any reduction in customs duties on imported goods, which would lead to negative repercussions on national industries, in terms of weakening their competitiveness, and thus their ability to employ Jordanians.

Jaghbir called for the formation of a joint committee from the Ministry of Labor and Chambers of Industry for the purpose of developing a work policy in this sector, which would contribute to creating more jobs for Jordanians.