The Legitimacy of the Public-Sector Employee’s Strike in the Jordanian Legislation: A Study Case

The national and international have endorsed the act of striking as a basic common right that is carte blanche but confined to local laws and regulations. The issue, however, has been an area of controversy; a number of countries have been diverse in their stance in terms of banning such an act or legalize I. Jordan is one of the countries which ban the public-sector employee to strike in order to ensure the public facilities and services necessary fir the citizen’s daily-life activities and needs, noting that this ban in exempted from the private-sector employees in accordance to the labour law.

So many legislators have highlighted the right and obligations of the pubic-sector employee, focusing the attention on his right in striking to a great extent that might expose his right to be confined in case of a conflict with the principle of public utility. Over history, many countries have been legitimizing the right of striking for the public-sector employees because of several reasons. First, conducting a strike might be harmful for the stream of public utitlity. In addition, this act represents in a way one of the vital features of the state’s sovereignty.

Despite the fact that many countries have joined the international conventions that ensure the public-sector employee, known as public official, in striking, the Jordanian legislator has not exercised this right on real grounds in the space of the employee’s profession, but he has been satisfied with the words that ban employees to strike as documented in the Civil Service Regulations. The legislator considers striking as any illegal conduct resulting in dangerous consequences and disruption in the public utility regularly and steadily.

This study will tackle the legitimacy of the public-sector employees in the Jordanian law. The attention will be focused on the Jordanian teachers;’ strike as a study case with reference to the Jordanian Constitution, including the relevant bylaws and regulations, the provisions of Jordanian courts like the Constitutional Court of Jordan and the Supreme Administrative Court of Jordan.