The Higher Council for the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (HCD), in partnership with the International Labour Organisation (ILO), organised a dialogue session entitled “Promoting the Inclusion of Persons with Disabilities in Jordan's Garment Industry.” The session aimed to exchange experiences and highlight international best practices in mainstreaming persons with disabilities into the garment industry sector, and discuss the challenges hindering their inclusion into this sector.
The session marks the culmination of the efforts of the “Better Work” program to improve working conditions, promote workers' rights and decent work, and enhance the competitiveness of Jordan’s garment sector. Funded by the Government of Canada, the programme aims to raise institutional awareness, develop tools, and apply best practices to promote more inclusive and equitable work environments for persons with disabilities in Jordan's export-oriented garment industry.
In her opening remarks during the session, Ghadeer Al-Haris, Assistant Secretary General for Technical Affairs at HCD, emphasised the importance of preparing a study entitled “Assessment of the Situation of Workers with Disabilities in Jordanian Garment Factories,” noting that it represents an important step in ongoing national efforts to ensure the empowerment of persons with disabilities and open up the labour market to them in a fair and sustainable manner by providing an inclusive, barrier-free work environment that accommodates diversity and values competencies, without discrimination or marginalization.
In the same context, Ms. Amal Mawafi, Country Coordinator for ILO in Jordan, emphasised that “Our work in the Jordanian garment sector reflects the key messages from the recent Global Disability Summit held in Germany and the Amman-Berlin Declaration, particularly the call to move from commitment to implementation and to invest in practical solutions that ensure the full inclusion of persons with disabilities in the labour market.”
During the session, the main findings of the ILO study entitled “Assessment of the Situation of Workers with Disabilities in Jordanian Garment Factories” were presented. The study addressed the current state of inclusion for persons with disabilities in the garment industry. It revealed institutional gaps, infrastructure constraints, and social barriers that hinder the employment of persons with disabilities, despite the existence of supportive national legislation.
The session also reviewed the contents of the “Guidelines for Promoting the Employment of Persons with Disabilities in the Garment Sector,” which provide practical tools for human resources personnel and workplace committees to implement reasonable accommodations. The aim is to promote inclusive employment and create a more equitable and accessible work environment for people with disabilities.
Experts representing the Ministry of Labour, employers, the General Union of Textile and Garment Workers, and HCD attended the dialogue session. The participants exchanged views and perspectives, emphasising the importance of continuing joint efforts to bridge gaps in workplace accessibility, address social stigma, and ensure equal opportunities for all.
During her participation in the session, Samia Al-Zoubi, Officer for the Employment of Persons with Disabilities at the Ministry of Labour, emphasised that protecting the rights of all workers and ensuring a safe working environment through effective inspection and enforcement of occupational health and safety standards are among the Ministry of Labour’s most important goals.
During his speech at the dialogue session, Abdul Raouf Al-Rabihat, a member of the parliamentary labour committee, said the committee is ready to provide the necessary support to push for changes to national laws that would benefit persons with disabilities in all areas of life.
Khaled Al-Omrani, Deputy President of the General Union of Workers in the Textile and Clothing Industry, emphasised “the union's commitment to the right of persons with disabilities to decent work, its ongoing efforts to include their rights in collective agreements, and to promote their inclusion into the work environment.”
Anne Teresa, Executive Director of Culture and Human Affairs at Classic Fashion, pointed out that the inclusion of persons with disabilities will not happen overnight. It will never happen if we do not start now. She also stressed the need for all employers to meet the requirements for mainstreaming persons with disabilities into inclusive work environments.
In turn, Member of Parliament Abdul Raouf Al-Rabihat, a member of the Parliamentary Labour Committee, noted during his speech at the dialogue session that the committee is prepared to provide the necessary support to push for amendments to national legislation that would advance the public interests of persons with disabilities in various aspects of life.
The event concluded with a call for continued cooperation among stakeholders to build a more inclusive and sustainable apparel industry.