Union Recognition

Recognition of staff unions and representation for all employees, including women and international staff.

Introduction

Al-Ahliyya Amman University (AAU) affirms its strong institutional commitment to fair representation and the protection of labour rights through the Union and Labour Rights Recognition Procedure, which guarantees that all employees, including women, international staff, administrative teams, faculty, and outsourced workers, have the right to representation, collective dialogue, and participation in workplace decision-making.

AAU maintains an inclusive approach that encourages open communication, respects the right to organize, and ensures that employee voices are incorporated into university policies, employment frameworks, and institutional development plans. This aligns directly with SDG 8 (Decent Work and Economic Growth) and SDG 10 (Reduced Inequalities) by strengthening labour protections, promoting gender equality, safeguarding minority representation, and supporting transparent and ethical employment structures.

Through joint committees, HR consultation channels, staff representation councils, and grievance mechanisms, AAU ensures that workers’ rights are upheld and that all staff, regardless of background or identity, have equal access to advocacy, dialogue, and collective bargaining structures.

Centers and Departments

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01Human Resources and Institutional Development Unit

HR leads the implementation of the Union and Labour Rights Recognition Procedure, ensures that all employees are informed about their rights, and manages institutional communication channels that support worker representation. It also facilitates gender-inclusive committees, equal-opportunity platforms, and staff consultation meetings.

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02Sustainability and International Ranking Center (SIRC)

SIRC monitors SDG 8 indicators related to labour rights, transparency, representation, and worker protection. It ensures that all union-related data is documented and published in the AAU Sustainability Reports, reinforcing credible and transparent reporting.

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03Finance Department

Supports fair employment by ensuring equal pay for equal work, transparent compensation structures, and compliance with labour rights policies. The department plays a key role in gender-pay gap monitoring, a critical component of equitable worker representation.

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04General Supplies and Services Department

Ensures that outsourced workers cleaning staff, security, drivers, and service contractors receive the same union-rights recognition and grievance mechanisms available to permanent employees, in line with AAU’s Outsourced Labour Rights Policy.

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05Global Engagement Center (GEC)

The GEC ensures that international staff are represented equally, providing advisory support, cultural integration assistance, and equitable access to labour rights channels. This strengthens inclusion for non-Jordanian employees within union and representation structures.

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06Women Health Center (WHC)

The WHC supports gender equity, addressing women's workplace needs, well-being, and representation, reinforcing fair participation of women in staff committees, unions, and labour councils.

Activities

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01AAU Signs a Memorandum of Understanding with The Human Rights Organization “Rain Collective”

This MoU strengthens AAU’s commitment to labour rights, anti-discrimination, human dignity, and inclusive representation. The partnership provides training programs, awareness sessions, and rights-based workshops that empower staff, including women and international employees, to understand and assert their workplace rights.

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02MoU Between Al-Ahliyya Amman University and Al-Hussein Society for Training and Inclusion

This partnership enhances inclusivity, equal representation, and workplace integration for individuals with disabilities. The activities conducted empower staff and students to access equitable participation channels and ensure that union engagement is open to all.

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03AAU Business Faculty Participation in Advanced Crisis Management Training

These training programs strengthen staff capacity, empower faculty voices, and enhance their ability to participate effectively in institutional decision-making committees – an essential element of fair staff representation.

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04Digital Transformation Conference (ICDFB 2025) – Patronized by Princess Alia

The conference promotes professional empowerment, employee visibility, and participation in strategic institutional initiatives. Active engagement in such events reinforces staff representation and collaborative dialogue.

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05Global Engagement Activities Supporting International Staff Inclusion

The GEC organizes international cultural integration activities, global mobility exchange events, and cross-border training opportunities supporting equitable representation of international employees in campus committees and union structures.

Impact Evaluation & Development Plan

Performance Evaluation

Structured Assessment Tools

AAU uses standardized sustainability literacy surveys, competency-based rubrics, reflective learning assessments, and course-embedded evaluation instruments to measure student and staff understanding of SDG principles, particularly labour rights, workplace equality, and inclusive representation.
- Annual Assessment Cycles
Union-related awareness and labour-rights knowledge are assessed annually across staff, faculty, and administrative departments. Assessments track trends in understanding collective representation, employee rights, and institutional fairness.
- Quantitative & Qualitative Indicators
The assessment framework collects:
- scenario-based knowledge questions (labour rights & union structures),
- Likert-scale indicators (perceptions of fairness & representation),
- open-ended reflections (experiences with inclusivity, dialogue, and workplace equality).
- Integration with Curriculum
Assessment outcomes inform curriculum improvement, embedding SDG 8 and workplace-justice themes across business, law, HRM, and social sciences courses. Faculty development also includes training on labour ethics and inclusive leadership.
- Transparency and Public Reporting
All assessment findings are validated by SIRC and published in:
- AAU Sustainability Report 2024–2025
- Executive Sustainability Report
- AAU Sustainability Portal
ensuring complete transparency.
Development Actions
Action 1: University-Wide Labour Rights Awareness Survey Annual survey measuring staff understanding of union rights and representation. Target: 70% participation rate. Action 2: Employee Representation Framework Develop a standardized representation framework ensuring equal participation of women, international staff, and outsourced workers in committees. Target: Implementation by 2026. Action 3: Union-Inclusive Training Programs Launch training modules on labour rights, anti-discrimination, and grievance mechanisms. Target: 2025–2027. Action 4: Representation & Equity Dashboard Digital dashboard publishing union participation rates, grievance outcomes, and representation distribution. Target: Operational by 2026. Action 5: Regional Benchmarking Benchmark AAU practices against leading universities in MENA. Target: Annual published report.
Benchmarking & Best Practice
AAU benchmarks its union-recognition model against global leaders:
- University of British Columbia
- University of Cambridge
- University of Gothenburg
Best Practices Adopted
- labour-rights training,
- equal-opportunity representation structures,
- gender-equity mechanisms,
- public dashboards for transparency.
Localization to Jordan AAU adapts global models through:
- Labour Rights and Non-Discrimination Policy,
- Union and Labour Rights Recognition Procedure,
- alignment with Jordan Labour Law,
- national regulations on workplace equality and collective representation.
Institutional Integration Summary Union recognition at AAU is fully embedded across HR operations, staff committees, and campus-wide representation mechanisms. Through policies, procedures, assessments, benchmarking, and internationally aligned practices, AAU ensures that all employees, women, men, local, international, permanent, and outsourced enjoy equal rights to representation, consultation, and workplace voice, contributing to a fair, transparent, and socially responsible institution aligned with SDG 8 and SDG 10.