Labor Lawsuits from the Employer's Side: Liability and Defenses
When an establishment receives notice of a labor lawsuit, the first reaction is usually to calculate the amount claimed, compare it with the cost of litigation, and decide on that basis. That calculation is the first mistake made in the file. The Jordanian Labour Law No. 8 of 1996 and its amendments was built on an approach that takes account of the employee's position as the weaker party in the relationship, and on that basis it attached rules on liability and proof that make the establishment's defensive position depend on what it had documented before the dispute, not on what it says afterward. More importantly, a judgment issued in one file rarely stays one file, which makes putting these lawsuits before a lawyer who specializes in labor law a risk-management decision, not only a litigation decision.
1. Risk Is Measured by the Pattern, Not the Amount
A claim brought by a single employee may look limited in value, and the apparently sensible course is to settle it quickly or to meet it with as little effort as possible. But this assessment overlooks the fact that labor files reveal the establishment's general policy, not the individual incident.
The question decided in one employee's lawsuit, such as how his wage is calculated, how the termination of his service is characterized, or how regular his records are, is usually the same question that exists with dozens of others. When a judgment settles a principle on that question, it becomes available to everyone in the same situation, among both current employees and those whose service has ended.
That is why the right question on receiving the lawsuit is not "how much will this lawsuit cost" but "what will be decided in it, and who can rely on it later". This is a question that cannot be answered from the statement of claim alone, but only from reading the establishment's whole situation.
2. The Scope of the Liability an Establishment May Face
Labor claims in Jordan revolve around well-known themes, which differ greatly in how hard they are to defend:
Claims of an arithmetical nature. These are claims concerning the calculation of entitlements that arise from the length of service or the wage, where the dispute is over the basis of the calculation rather than the entitlement itself. We have set out one of their most prominent forms in the article End-of-Service Gratuity under Jordanian Law.
Claims concerning the lawfulness of the termination. These weigh most heavily on the establishment, because what is examined is not a number but the assessment of a management decision taken earlier, and we have dealt with their criteria in Unfair Dismissal under the Jordanian Labour Law.
Claims concerning the existence or characterization of the relationship. For example, a dispute over the description of the relationship, over its duration, or over who counts as the actual employer when there are several entities. These open a file wider than the claim itself.
Composite claims. These are the most common in practice, since the employee combines more than one basis in a single lawsuit, so that each basis becomes a separate battle within the file.
Identifying which of these themes is the real source of risk in a particular file, and which can be settled early at the lowest cost, is itself a legal point that merits consultation before any answer to the statement of claim is filed, because what is admitted in the first answer is hard to withdraw later.
3. The Same File Seen through Different Eyes
A single labor dispute is read in two very different ways, and awareness of the opposing reading is what builds the defense:
| Issue | As the employee sees it | As the establishment sees it | What the court looks at |
|---|---|---|---|
| Termination of service | Dismissal without cause | A management decision with its justifications | The justifications documented at the time of termination |
| Wage | What he was actually paid | What is shown in the records | What is proven from the evidence as a whole |
| Length of service | From the first actual day of work | From the date of formal registration | The actual facts, once proven |
| Signed release | A paper signed out of need | A final discharge | The validity of consent and the scope of what it covered |
| Incomplete records | Evidence of a violation | An administrative detail | A burden that falls on whoever was responsible for keeping them |
| Settlement | An acceptable solution | An extra cost | Not a factor in the assessment |
The fifth row is what overturns most files. When the dispute concerns a fact that the law presumes the employer is able to prove because of its position in the relationship, the absence of the document is not read neutrally; it is read against whoever was supposed to keep it.
4. Where Employers' Files Are Actually Lost
The recurring observation in these files is that the loss is rarely on the law, and is usually on matters that came years before the dispute or happened in its first days.
An establishment that enters the dispute relying on an oral account of what happened finds itself in the position of being asked to prove what it cannot prove. An establishment that treats the first notice as a routine procedure handed to an administrative employee has taken positions in the file before knowing what it is defending. And an establishment that answers the statement of claim with a general response, without specifics, has missed the defenses that could have ended part of the claim early.
Do not answer the statement of claim, and do not negotiate a settlement, before the file has been put before a specialist lawyer, because what is said at this stage is read later as the establishment's official position, and other claims, if any, are built on it.
Practical note: What circulates among business owners about the "maximum" amounts awarded in labor lawsuits is not a sound basis for assessing risk, because what is awarded in a single file is not the actual cost once the judgment opens the door to similar claims. The lawyer assesses the real exposure after reviewing the establishment's situation, not the lawsuit alone, a point that is settled by reviewing the file or consulting a specialist lawyer.
5. What the Lawyer Assesses on Taking On a Labor Defense File
The defense in a labor lawsuit does not begin with replying to what the statement of claim says, but with assessing the establishment's position in the dispute:
- The size of the exposure outside the lawsuit: how many employees are in a situation similar to the plaintiff's, and how likely they are to follow him if a judgment is issued on a shared question. This alone may turn the settlement decision upside down, in either direction.
- The actual evidentiary position: what is actually available to answer each basis of the claim, not what management believes is available.
- Defenses that end part of the claim: not every claim in a composite lawsuit is equally strong, and separating what can be rebutted from what is negotiated is the heart of managing the file.
- The full cost of the two paths: the right comparison is not between the settlement amount and the cost of litigation, but between the effect of each path on the establishment as a single unit.
6. Settlement Is as Much a Business Decision as a Legal One
Many business owners treat a settlement as an admission of fault and refuse it for reasons that have nothing to do with the establishment's interest. Others accept it quickly in the belief that it closes the file, and in doing so they open other files.
The right position lies between the two, and it is set by calculation, not by a position of principle: what will be decided if the dispute continues, who can rely on it, and what form of settlement closes what needs to be closed without admitting what should not be admitted. It is precisely this wording that distinguishes a settlement that ends a dispute from a settlement that becomes a document in the hands of the next opponent. We have dealt with the rights these settlements revolve around from the employee's side in Employee Rights on Termination of the Employment Contract, and reading it helps in understanding what will actually be claimed.
Time in these files is not neutral either, a subject we have covered from the angle of duration and the stages of the lawsuit in The Duration of Labor Cases in Jordan.
7. Frequently Asked Questions
Does the burden of proof fall on the employee or on the employer?
It depends on the question in dispute. For some questions, the law presumes that the party able to prove them is the employer, because of its position in the relationship and what it is supposed to keep; for others, the burden falls on whoever asserts them. Determining this in a particular file is among the first things examined when building the defense.
Does a signed release protect the establishment from the claim?
Not absolutely. The value of a release depends on its wording, the scope of what it covered and the circumstances in which it was signed, and it may be challenged. Relying on it alone as a final discharge is among the most costly assumptions in these files.
What happens if a judgment is issued in favor of one employee?
The judgment binds its parties, but the principle it settles on a shared question may be relied on by others in the same situation. That is why the effect of a judgment is measured by what it opens, not only by what it awards.
Can the establishment sue the employee?
Yes, liability in the employment relationship does not run in one direction only, and the employer may have claims arising from the employee's breach of his obligations. But assessing whether such claims are worthwhile, and whether it is appropriate to raise them within an existing dispute, is a matter to be studied carefully.
Does the establishment's liability differ if the employee is not registered with social security?
An irregular formal status does not extinguish the employee's rights, and it may open additional files against the establishment that go beyond the labor lawsuit itself. This is among the main things that widen a dispute beyond its original limits.
When should a lawyer be brought into the file?
On receipt of the first notice, not after the pleadings have been exchanged. Most of what is lost in these files happens in positions taken before the file has been fully assessed.
Does liability end when the employment relationship ends?
The end of the relationship does not end the claims arising from it, and they can still be raised within the periods to which the law attaches an effect. Assessing this varies with the type of claim and the date it arose.
Legal Consultation
Labor lawsuits are among the files whose size establishments misjudge from the start, managing them as an individual dispute when in reality they are a test of the establishment's policy before the courts: for the employer, a judgment on a limited claim may turn into the basis for successive claims by other employees; for the employee, having his claim met with neglect or delay may lead to an escalation that could have been avoided at lower cost. Because the establishment's defensive position is set by what it already has before the dispute, not by what is said afterward, early assessment is the difference between a file that is managed and a file that manages the establishment. For specialist legal consultation in labor and employment cases, or to read our related articles on unfair dismissal under the Jordanian Labour Law and end-of-service gratuity under Jordanian law, you can contact Alabwini Law Firm.
