Who owns it
Mr. Ahmed Nuseriat
What they produce
Blue Jeans for womens and children
Who they produce for
Wal-Mart and Gloria Vanderbilt
Address
Ad Dulayl Industrial Estate, Plot #25, Zaqua, Jordan
Number of workers
850+
Summary of Problems at the Factory
• forced and unpaid overtime
• failure to pay the legally mandated premium for work
• verbal harassment and abuse
Average rate of pay
$0.46/hour
Work Schedule
8am to 8pm
Reports/More Information About Factory
National Labor Commission March 2006 Report [1] PDF
Wal-Mart’s Standards for Suppliers [2] PDF
Code of Conduct Violations
In a report prepared by the National Labor Commission {www.nlcnet.org}on the working conditions of the factory for March 2006 found that Petra had violated Jordanian laws as well as the Wal-Mart Standards for Suppliers.
Working Hours: Twice a week the company forces workers to work mandatory all night 20 ½ hour shifts, from 8am to 4:30am the following morning to meet production deadlines. It is not unusual for workers to spend 89 hours a week at the factory and at least 84 hours working. They also get only one or two days off a month, even though they are supposed to have off every Friday. When they are forced to work on Fridays, they get out at 4:30 pm.
Abuse: Workers have reported being verbally abuse, beatings, being slapped and being punched. They are routinely hit for making mistakes, for speaking during working hours, or for taking too long in the bathroom.
Pay: Workers are paid 21% below the legally-mandated minimum wage. They receive $0.46 an hour when they should be receiving $0.58 an hour. This means that sewers who take 27 and a half minutes to make a pair of jeans are paid only $0.21 per pair. Moreover, they are not paid the 25 to 50% overtime premium for extra hours and the penalty for a taking a LEGAL sick day is the loss of 3 days of wages. The lack of pay-slips or time-cards also makes it easier for the company to take advantage of workers because it makes it harder for them to keep track of their hours worked.