The Ministry of Labor “proposes” new measures to curtail competition of Syrian labor in the job market

In a statement issued today, the Ministry of Labor announced receiving a number of complaints from professionals and from trade unionists regarding competition with Syrian labor.  According to the Ministry, the latests of such complaints originated from the Borj Hammud merchants association which deplored the negative impact suffered by the Lebanese because of jobs that are now being done by Syrian, and which according to the same source, increased unemployment to 42%.  The Ministry also noted that it received a similar complaint from the syndicate of bakeries in Lebanon and Mount Lebanon to the same effect.  In its statement, the Ministry suggested a number of new measures to curtail this phenomenon namely: the setting up of a specialized experts’ committee to study the situation so that decrees can be issued to regulate the contractual relation between bakery workers and employers, creating a unit for bakery workers within the NSSF, issuing a decree which allows the syndicate of bakeries to provide a free affidavit which is necessary to obtain protection from the NSSF and free bakery workers from exploitation, and registering foreign bakery workers in the NSSF after they obtain a work permit.

 

(Source: Al-Nahar, As-Safir & Al-Mustaqbal 8 January 2015)