“What is the point of getting a job in the public sector?” asks Omar Hamidi, a graduate of the Faculty of Economics at Damascus University, noting that a government job cannot provide him with a decent life after graduation, so he is trying to find a job in the private sector or travel abroad.
Government employment
The opportunity to work in government institutions no longer attracts young people or job seekers as it did at the beginning of the new millennium, when a government job with a fixed salary was the goal of most Syrian university graduates.
With the decline in the value of salaries and wages and the collapse of the local currency in Syria, the average government salary does not exceed 150,000 Syrian pounds (30 US dollars) per month, and it is not enough to cover a family’s expenses for more than a few days.
Hamidi said in remarks to “Al-Hal Net”, “Yes, I heard about the Job Gateway forum organized by the Ministry of Social Affairs, but I am not interested. Some students attended one of its sessions and expressed frustration with the results. What is there to be optimistic about when the government still considers 96,000 pounds a monthly salary, even though it is not enough for a single day?”
With great resentment and frustration, he spoke of his view that economic conditions are heading from bad to worse, but at the same time stressed that he is looking for an opportunity to leave the country and start a new life. He added, “Right now I am looking for a job in a private company away from the public sector, and I am also seeking a chance to travel and start a new life outside Syria. Here I do not see any hope of building a good future, and the government does not seem capable even of fulfilling its promises.”
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The Ministry of Social Affairs and Labor launched the activities of the “Job Gateway” forum, which has been running for several days. The forum is being held in cooperation between the ministry and Syriatel, with the participation of many public and private institutions, with the aim of presenting new job opportunities in the labor market.
According to Al-Watan newspaper, more than 50 companies, institutions, and organizations from various sectors and industries are participating in person, while more than 100 companies are participating virtually, offering hundreds of diverse job opportunities in telecommunications, food and pharmaceutical industries, international organizations, banks, engineering companies, and others.
Nagham al-Saadi, a student at the Faculty of Business Administration at Damascus University, said she attended several sessions of the forum with her university classmates, noting that their focus was on private companies, as they offer better job opportunities.
Al-Saadi said in remarks to “Al-Hal Net”, “Certainly, students were focusing on private companies. Private companies pay salaries starting at 200,000 pounds, and in some companies salaries reach 500,000, and that kind of salary is like a dream for university graduates.”
Al-Saadi also pointed to the difficulty recent university graduates face in obtaining these opportunities, adding, “It is true that some companies pay these amounts, but these opportunities are very limited, and employers often ask for extensive experience, while we, as new graduates, of course do not have long experience in the labor market.”
Salary and spending gap
With the continued rise in the prices of goods and basic materials, the gap between employees’ wages and spending has widened, with wages covering only 15 percent of expenses at best.
Syrian People’s Assembly member Mohammad Zuhair Tinawi said that the wages of workers in public sector entities have become detached from reality, and that it is illogical to give an employee a full month’s wage that is not enough for more than two days.
Tinawi explained in previous press statements last month that “the needs of a Syrian family today are no less than 1.5 million pounds per month, which is equivalent to 10 times the wages received by most workers in public sector entities, whose monthly wage does not exceed 150,000 pounds.”
Resignations among skilled personnel
As a result of low wages and salaries in the government sector, it has witnessed over the past years thousands of resignations by qualified personnel in various specializations. Tinawi considered this “a clear indicator of deteriorating living conditions and of those resigning searching for alternative job opportunities,” warning that “resignations could turn into a phenomenon that contributes to draining public institutions of expertise and qualified workers.”
The government in Damascus stands helpless in the face of the collapse in the value of salaries and wages against foodstuffs and essential goods for Syrian families, in addition to the collapse of the local currency, which has stripped salaries in Syria of a large share of their value. This has recently driven hundreds of employees in Syrian government institutions to resign.
Commenting on low salaries and wages in Syria, Damascus Chamber of Commerce member Fayez Qassouma stressed the need for the economy to flourish so that Syrian citizens can live, noting that this necessarily means improving the electricity situation and raising income levels.
Qassouma said in statements carried by local Arabesque radio a few days ago that employees’ income in Syria is absolutely incompatible with even the most basic essential needs. He added, “Even if the salary were raised to a minimum of 500,000 pounds, it would still not be enough to buy more than a loaf of bread and an onion.”
He added, “When an employee’s salary is 200,000 and he has two children, this salary is not enough to feed each child more than half a falafel sandwich for three meals a day, and that is without paying for electricity, water, and other expenses.”
Syrians in areas under the control of the Syrian government are struggling to overcome recurring price hikes, so Syrian families have begun removing many consumer items from their monthly shopping lists in an effort to balance income and expenses.
With the arrival of 2022, food prices in Syria rose, whether for vegetables, fruits, rationed goods, meat, or others. It seems that the new year brought with it many changes in the Syrian economy, and these changes could lead to unexpected consequences for Syrian families, especially as most of them are now classified as poor.
It does not appear that the government in Damascus is capable of controlling prices and securing basic foodstuffs in quantities sufficient for the needs of Syrian markets, despite the many promises it has recently made in this regard.
Average cost of living
According to the latest studies, the average cost of living for a Syrian family had, by the end of September 2022, increased by 563,970 Syrian pounds compared with the costs recorded in July, reaching nearly 3.5 million pounds.
The study published by “Qasioun” newspaper indicated that it relied on a specific method to calculate the minimum cost of living for a Syrian family of five, namely calculating the minimum cost of the necessary food basket based on an individual’s daily need for about 2,400 calories from diverse food sources.
The study stated, “The minimum cost of living for a family rose by about 352,481 pounds, moving from 1,881,858 pounds in July to 2,234,339 pounds in September, meaning that costs rose by 19 percent in just three months.”
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