The ILO estimated that less than one percent of children ages 10 to 14 years in Jordan were working in 2002. According to a study by the Ministry of Labor (MOL) published in 2002, children who work are employed in automobile repair, carpentry, sales, blacksmith shops, tailoring, construction, and food services.Child vendors on the streets of Amman work selling newspapers, food, and gum. Other children provide income for their families by rummaging through trash dumpsters to find recyclable items.Due to deteriorating economic conditions, the presence of working children, especially as street vendors, may be more prevalent now than it was 10 years ago.Working children are primarily concentrated in the governorates of Amman, Zarka, Irbid, Balqa, and Ma'an.Many working children are victims of physical, verbal, and sexual abuse in the workplace and are exposed to hazardous chemicals and dangerous working conditions .
Education in Jordan is free and compulsory for children ages 6 to 17 years.The Ministry of Education (MOE) is required to open a school in every community where there are at least 10 students for grades 1 through 4. In 2001, the gross primary enrollment rate was 98.6 percent and the net primary enrollment rate was 91.3 percent. Gross and net enrollment ratios are based on the number of students formally registered in primary school and therefore do not necessarily reflect actual school attendance. Recent primary school attendance statistics are not available for Jordan. Dropout rates are relatively high at the intermediate stage, particularly in rural areas after children reach the age of 13 years. The most commonly cited reasons for dropping out of school are poverty, disability, poor academic performance, and parental attitudes.
For nearly 33,000 children, child labour is a fact of life in Jordan, a 2007-2008 survey by the department of statistics showed. Children, mostly males between five and 17, take up jobs in repair shops, agriculture and construction, or work as blacksmiths, carpenters and rubbish collectors. They are often exploited, paid low wages and are at risk of injury from heavy machinery, noise pollution, poor lighting and exposure to chemicals.Under Jordanian law, including international child conventions the country has ratified, children under 16 are not allowed to work; the age limit is 18 for those taking hazardous jobs that involve exposure to chemicals.
Employers caught violating the law by hiring underage children, or forcing those over 16 to work more than six hours a day without a break, face fines that range from 100 dinars to 500 dinars (Dh520 to 2,600) and are doubled if they are repeated.
According to a survey by the ministry of labour on the worst forms of child labour, published in December 2006, 13 per cent of 387 children were subjected to conditions that put their physical and mental health at risk. More than 16 per cent earned just $15 to $75 a month, well below the national minimum wage. The minimum wage was raised this year to $210 from $155 a month.
hopefully that future will be better !!
