Providing advisory services to employers and employees on labour issues. Research: Conducting research and studies on labour issues and best practices. Networking: Building partnerships and networks with relevant stakeholders. Advocacy: Advocating for democratic values and rights in the workplace.

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Workplace disputes fall into two categories collective and individual.
COLLECTIVE
Collective labour disputes are between a group of employees (often represented by
their trade union) and their employer
The Jordanian Labour Law defines Collective Labour Dispute as every dispute that arises
between a group of employees or labour union on one hand and the employer or employers association
on the other hand about the application or interpretation of a collective work contract or pertains to
the circumstances and conditions of work.
The figure below depicts the elements of the Collective Labour Dispute:
To resolve such disputes the Law provides for clear and binding procedures, as
follows:
(1) Mediation proceedings managed by the Conciliation Representative:
The Conciliation Representative (CR) is an official of the Ministry of Labour
appointed by the Minister and having a mandate to undertake Mediation procedures
over a certain geographical area and for a certain period of time. Lawyers may not be
retained by the Parties before the Conciliation Representative.
DISPUTE RESOLUTION
PROCESS
UNDER THE JORDANIAM LABOUR LAW
NO.8 FOR 1996 AND ITS AMENDMENTS

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Once a collective dispute is referred to the Ministry the CR initiates the mediation
process to help the parties in reaching a binding negotiated agreement. This should be
done no later than 21 days from the date of the referral of dispute. Otherwise, the CR
should prepare a report on the dispute to the Minister who - failing to reach a
resolution - will refer the matter to a Conciliation Board.
(2) Conciliation Board:
The Conciliation Board is appointed by the Minister. It is chaired by a neutral person
and made up of 2 or more representatives of the disputing parties selected by them.
The members of the Board should do all that is necessary to reach a complete or
partial resolution to the dispute. All reports issued by the Conciliation Board must be
in writing and signed by all the representatives. Every dissenting member of the Board
should record his opinion in writing in the report. Lawyers may not be retained by the
Parties before the Conciliation Board.
If a resolution is reached the Conciliation Board will prepare a report to the Minster
annexed to it the binding settlement reached. This should be done no later than 21
days from the date of the referral of dispute. Otherwise, the Conciliation Board will
prepare a report to the Minster on the dispute and includes any recommendations.
Subsequently the Minster must refer the dispute to the Labour Court.
(3) Labour Court:
The Labour Court is a special court that convenes upon the request of the Minister. It
is comprised from three regular judges delegated by the Judicial Council for this
purposes. The Court is headed by the most senior judge and can convene in the
presence of two of its members. If their opinions differ, the third judge shall be
invited to participate. Labour disputes referred to the Labour Court shall be given an
urgent status. The Court shall convene within 7 days from the date of referral of the
dispute to it, and issue its final and binding decision within 30 days. The decision of
the Court shall be passed unanimously or by majority. Every dissenting member of
the Court should record his/her opinion in writing in the decision. Both parties may
appoint a Lawyer(s) to represent them before the Labour Court.

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The figure below outlines the process as reflected in the Law.
Finally it should be noted that all sessions of the Labour Court and the Conciliation
Board shall be held at the Ministry of Labour. The Ministry is responsible for
providing the administrative requirements, facilities and equipment. Both the
Conciliation Board Report and the Labour Court Decision should be published in one
or more local daily newspaper at the expense of the parties and within 30 days from
the date of the Minister’s receipt of the report or decision.

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INDIVIDUAL
Under the Jordanian law, Individual labour disputes arise from claims of labour rights
grounded in law or contract. Individual labour disputes occur between a certain
company and one of its employees, and can be during the period of employment or
after redundancy.
 During Employment
 Internal Regulations
For general issues all Companies employing 10 or more employees must adopt
Internal Regulations that are approved by the Ministry of Labour. These Internal
Regulations outline the working hours, daily and weekly rest period, work violations,
penalties and measures taken in respect thereof including the discharge from work,
method of its implementation and other details required by the nature of work
(Article 55 of the Labour Law). Accordingly, the Company’s Internal Regulations
should outline the company rules and the procedures for dealing with employee
complaints. These procedures should be followed by the employee and the employer.
 Wage Authority
In case of disputes over wages of any type, the Employee may resort to the Wage
Authority. This is an administrative procedure established by a decision of the Council
of Ministers upon a recommendation of the Minister of Labour. The Wage Authority
will have jurisdiction over a certain geographical area (Article 54 of the Labour Law).
It is meant to give fast and easy relief to the worker to receive his/her wages whether
its shortage in the paid wage, illegal deductions, delaying its payment or related to
payment for overtime hours.
A claim is filed before the Wage Authority by the Employee, but the Law also allows
the labor union to do so on his/her behalf. It is also permissible to submit one claim
from a number of Employees if they are working in the same Company and the
reason of their complaint is the same. Each of the two parties to the dispute may
appoint someone to act on his/her before the competent Wages Authority (such as a
lawyer).

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The decision of the Wage Authority is binding and enforceable and may be appealed
before a court of appeal within 10 days of its notification. Claims before the Wage
Authority or request for enforcement are exempt from fees.
 After Redundancy
 Wage Authority Mediation:
Under the Labour Law the Employee can ask for Mediation before the Wage
Authority to resolve any dispute. As a condition such request must be filed no later
than 6 months from the date of the termination of employment. If the Employer or
his/her representative fails to appear before the Wage Authority it can fine the
Employer 50 JODs. In doing so the Wage Authority shall follow the procedures as set
out in the Law for the Settlement of Civil Dispute through Mediation (the Law No.
12 for the year 2006).
 Court Procedures
The Courts on Conciliation has a jurisdiction over all individual labour disputes,
except for wage disputes eligible to be heard by the Wage Authority. The Law
provides that labour disputes should be dealt with as urgent and resolved with 3
months, yet on average court procedures take around 2 years to issue a decision which
is subject to appeal. Once finalized, the court decision is binding and enforceable. In
principle these cases as well as the request for enforcement are exempt from all fees.
It should be noted that the Law for the Settlement of Civil Dispute through
Mediation No. 12 for the year 2006 allows the Judge; after meeting with the parties
and upon their agreement, or based on their request, to refer the dispute to Court
Mediation. The Mediator can be a judge or a private mediator selected by the parties
upon the approval of the Conciliation Judge. The Law also provides that the
Mediation process must be confidential, without prejudice to the legal positions of the
parties’ and be completed within 3 months from the date of referral of the dispute.
If a positive settlement is reached, the Mediator submits a report including the agreed
settlement to the Conciliation Judge, which once ratified is, final, binding and
enforceable.

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In cases where no agreement was reached, a mediator also prepares a report that
reflects the level of the parties’ participation in to the proceedings. Thereafter the
judicial proceedings are continued.
The table below provides a snapshot of the available avenues for the formal
settlement of individual labour disputes.
Individual Labour Disputes
During employment After redundancy
 For general issues the Company Internal
Regulations outline the procedure to be
followed by the employer and the
employee
 Wage Authority Mediation – optional at
the request of the employee
 In case of disputes over wages of any
type – the employee may resort to the
Wage Authority
 Judicial procedures before the court of
Conciliation
- Court Mediation referred by the
Conciliation Judge subject to the
agreement of the parties
The Jordanian experience with Mediation is young and mostly in court based
mediation which to date is established only in the Palace of Justice in Amman. The
Jordanian legal system accepts mediation for labour issues as it presents a fast,
efficient, confidential, and less costly approach to prevent dispute escalation in the
workplace and to reach a fast and amicable resolution to labour disputes once they
occur.

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JORDAN BETTER WORKPLACE ASSOCIATION is a
Jordanian NGO established in 2013, with the aim of enhancing democratic
values in the workplace.
As a member based organization, comprised of professionals that are driven
by the desire to be positive agents for change in these challenging times.
Working on a volunteer basis; members draw on their skills and expertise to
achieve the NGO’ s goals, supported by external international advisors.
To this ends, JBWassociation works to provide a complete cycle of inclusive
and complementary legal, human resources development and research
activities.
These are:
Legal Solutions: Offering mediation services in the workplace
supported by legal tools to provide standard legal documents
and information notes.
Training: Training and capacity building activities and
educational toolkits.
Policy & Advocacy : Conducting research, studies and drafting
policy papers, awareness building campaigns and advocacy
with stakeholders.