BEIRUT: Syria’s labor minister criticized Sunday restrictions on Syrian workers in Lebanon, calling on Beirut to respect a labor treaty signed between the two countries 20 years ago.
Minister Khalaf Abdullah said Syria would contact Lebanon’s labor ministry to inquire about the new restrictions on Syrian workers in Lebanon, according to remarks in Syrian daily Al-Watan.
Abdullah said raising the issue came after “a series of measures that brother Lebanon has made concerning Syrian labor.”
He highlighted Lebanon’s recent decision to restrict many jobs to local citizens, saying that the Syrian government allows Lebanese to practice any profession in Syria.
Lebanon’s labor ministry announced last week that at least 62 professions have been confined to Lebanese nationals. The ministry said the decision came at a time when the Lebanese workforce is witnessing fierce competition.
The following sectors are among those now restricted to Lebanese, according to the ministry decision: administrative, banking, insurance, education, pharmaceuticals, technical professions, trade, finance, engineering, printing and publishing, medicine, law and auto repairs.
Abdullah also underlined the huge cost that a Syrian worker in Lebanon must pay to receive a work permit. The permit, according to the newspaper, could reach $1,000, apart form the need to have a sponsor and a financial deposit.
Abdullah said Lebanon had violated a 1994 pact which states that each of the two states must give the other’s workers the same rights, privileges and duties.
The minister also mentioned the harsh work conditions in which Syrians work in Lebanon and the high rate of child labor among Syrian refugees in Lebanon.
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