What mobilised Jordan? Labour rights at the heart of collective actions in Jordan in 2021

For a decade, Jordan has been witnessing a severe economic stagnation impacting wages and access to welfare, with average GDP growth of around 2% per year, against average inflation of 2.4%. Stagnation has been accompanied by an increase in the unemployment rate (25% of the active population as of 2021), especially among youth (48.1%). The effects of these structural challenges have been further amplified by the Covid-19 pandemic, which left several unprotected workers’ groups deprived of their main sources of income for long periods. In 2021, socio-economic grievances were voiced in 60.8% of collective actions mapped in Jordan. This visual shows that labour issues and demands were predominant, a trend consistent with mobilisations of recent years, reflecting the decline in living conditions in the country.