University graduates who earn a bachelor's degree may start with a salary that does not exceed 300 dinars in the public sector and 400 in the private sector. A slight increase may occur for Master's Degree holders. The holder of a doctorate degree will earn a salary of between 850-1300 dinars in Jordanian universities if he/she was lucky and enjoyed special contacts to arrange a vacant position. The salaries of employees in the public sector do not exceed the rate of 400 dinars. In the private sector, the salary of 800 dinars might be logical but you need to work no less than 12 hours a day and live under the psychological pressure of a demanding job. It is really annoying to see that if an employee at a public institution gets a 500 plus JD salary he/she will be described as "supported" by influential people and that such a salary is a corruption. This description is always there even if the employee has an accumulated and diverse experience and high professional standards. This is based on the low rate of salaries for public employees who envy their colleagues with increased salaries while the proper reaction would be to increase all salaries based on differential qualities and experiences. Migration of educated and talented Jordanians to the Gulf, Europe and the
Sunday, June 01, 2008
Despite the great importance attached by the Jordanian society to education, which is reflected by the willingness of Jordanian families to spend a large proportion of its budget on education of sons and daughters in universities, the recent transformations in the Jordanian economy have made education a minor element in the process of wealth creation in Jordan
It is true that education still occupies a distinguished social position, especially if the title of a person is described as engineer or Doctor, but the last few years have shifted the center of social appreciation from the respect driven by education to the "respect" driven by wealth created from real estate deals, stock market and rapid accumulation of money.
The society is always skeptical of big professional salaries but still is at ease with semi-literate people who can grab a fortune by selling a piece of land or manipulate the stock market. This is considered clever and a "legitimate" source of income while high salaries are not!
Significant proportion of public sector employees continue to work only for pension and social security, but their primary source of income is trade in lands and property, which is conducted during official working hours. At the same time, private institutions and universities refuse to grant the appropriate salary to balance the increased cost of livin. That is why we find a lot of university professors relying on consultancies to add more income to their deteriorating financial status.
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On June, 02, 2008 10:08 PM , Hamzeh N
said:
Good article, as the subject of unfair compensation in at least the private sector rarely gets brought up in the Jordanian blogosphere.
On December, 03, 2008 5:22 AM , افلام
from Egypt
said:
from Egypt
said:I think the proper word is pursuit and not respect for wealth created by real estate, stocks, ....
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"shifted...from the respect driven by education to the "respect" driven by wealth created from real estate deals, stock market and rapid accumulation of money"
I think the proper word is pursuit and not respect for wealth created by real estate, stocks, ....
I have not met too many Jordanians who respect new money. They lust after it. In Jordan, there is no old money either. As a matter of fact, Jordan has no celebrities whatsoever backed by the respect of the majority of Jordanians other than dead Jordanians like military hero Mash'hour Haditha and living artist/genius Imad Hajjaj, based on a web survey done a couple of years ago. So it's good to know Jordanians are still normal people who respect courage and creativity, not money and power.