Slideshow
Building skills and formalizing employment for Syrian refugees in Jordan
The ILO is implementing a new project in Jordan aimed at helping Syrian construction workers obtain permits, occupational certificates and social security enrolment. The UK-funded project is part of wider efforts to help formalize the work of Syrian refugees in specific sectors in Jordan. Some of the workers explain what it means to them to be formally employed in the country.
There are more than one million Syrians in Jordan, with around 655,000 of them officially registered as refugees. A large number of Syrians work in construction without work permits and outside of Jordan’s labour regulations.
© Ala’a al Sukhni / ILO
Ahmad Ali Al Rifai tries to make ends meet by doing odd jobs in construction. He says that, without a work permit, regular work is hard to find. “Until now, I have been mainly working on private projects in homes,” he explains. “Once I get a work permit, I will be protected. I can formally enter the labour market and get more and better jobs.”
© Ala’a al Sukhni / ILO
The ILO has partnered with the National Employment and Training (NET) Company to provide short courses for Syrians and Jordanians working in the construction sector to prepare workers for a skills test that is conducted under the mandate of the Jordan Centre of Accreditation and Quality Assurance (CAQA).
© ILO
The certification will allow Syrian workers to enrol in the Social Security self-employment scheme. This will increase their employability and help them attract an official body such as an employer’s organization to facilitate their work permit application and legalize their employment status.
© ILO
Mohammed Ahmad Al Malouli is a Syrian with calligraphy skills, who is currently working to decorate a mosque under construction in Amman. He says he wants to be able to work freely in Jordan. “A work permit will allow me to become more financially independent. Life in Jordan is expensive and we can no longer rely on financial aid.”
© Ala’a al Sukhni / ILO
Besides the theoretical training, the programme includes on-the-job monitoring, covering a range of professions including floor layering, painting, plastering, plumbing and interior decoration.
© Ala’a al Sukhni / ILO
NET trainers Zyad Haymoor (L) and Izzeddin Ehdeb (R) say the one-month training covers areas that workers lack knowledge in, such as occupational health and safety issues as well as designing architectural and technical plans. “These workers are already well-experienced, yet we need to help them upgrade their skills and knowledge through training,” says Haymoor.
© Ala’a al Sukhni / ILO
Qusai Mohammed Al Hiraki (R) used to be in the restaurant business but now works in construction because he says it pays better. He says that he wants the certificate because it will make him more qualified and will help him obtain the skills recognition needed to find work. “This profession is very important. We are artists building and decorating homes.”
© Ala’a al Sukhni / ILO
To-date, around 1,000 workers have enrolled in the ILO programme, 460 of whom have already passed the skills test. There are more than 1,500 additional Syrian workers waiting to enrol.
© Ala’a al Sukhni / ILO
“Once I pass the test and get my certification and work permit, I plan to set up my own construction business,” says Moussa Ne’emat. “So people will be able to just hand me a piece of land, and I will had them back a building with its keys.”
© Ala’a al Sukhni / ILO