Family Ties and Economic Stability Concerns of Migrant Labour Families in Jordan

M. S. KAMIAR * and H. F. ISMAIL **

Migration is an essential key to the interrelationships between population change, economic condition, and regional development. It causes and is affected by local populations and socioeconomic conditions. Potential conflicts arise because migration can influencc the growth prospects of both sending and receiving regions. Individual migrants cannot be conceived of as rational actors maximizing interests under market forces. By and large “the flow of labor is directed by supermarket institutions beyond the control of an individual or a group of migrants” (Burawoy, 1976, p. 1051).

In the Middle East, labor migration from poor to rich oil-producing countries has become more important in the region’s present socioeconomic conditions. Including family members of the migrant workers, the lives and well-being of more than 10 million people are highly affected by this process. Many studies have been conducted pertaining to various economic consequences of labor migration in this region, but little attention has been paid to the social consequences of labor migration.

Jordan is a unique example of a Third World country that is highly dependent on exporting labor. For example, the number of professional institutions in Jordan has increased by more than three times between the late 1960s and early 1980s to meet the demand for skilled workers. These institutions help workers to find jobs abroad. By the mid-l980s, more than 40% of the Jordanian labor force was working abroad and more than 30% of Jordan’s national income came from remittances (Ibrahim, 1983); labor migration is the most critical and potentially explosive development and yet it is least studied (Burki, 1983; Kifner and Miller, 1985).

The purpose of this paper is to study social consequences of labor migration on families in Jordan. Particularly, changes in family ties and concern about economic stability as perceived by migrant families are the main focus. After presenting the conceptual framework, data, and methodology, results are presented for both non- accompanied families (NAFS) and accompanied families (AFS). Finally, the findings for both types of families are compared and some concluding remarks are given.

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* Department of Social and Behavioral Sciences, Florida Community College, Jacksonville (U.S . A.).

** Advanced College for Teacher Certification, Amman (Jordan). 56 1

CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK

A new form of labor migration was initiated by the industrial revolution in Europe. The expansion of industry created a need for more labor. As a result, waves of migrant workers moved into cities from the surrounding rural periphery. When such labor migration was not sufficient, international temporary migrant workers were brought in. This later migration provided cheap labor without the economic or political costs usually associated with a permanent workforce (Rhodes, 1978). Modem labor migration is a very highly organized State-controlled movement of workers mainly from less developed to more developed, poor to rich, countries. Modem migration also functions as an “escape valve” for developing countries that prevents labor uprisings caused by lack of employment opportunities.

The present labor migration is a multi-impact process that affects almost all levels of society including the government, local community, and the family in both labor- importing and labor-exporting countries. At the local community level, workers seek employment abroad for higher wages so they can achieve a higher standard of living for themselves, their families and their communities.

At the world market level, labor migration is involved in integrating the Third World people into the capitalist system of commodity production (Wallerstein, 1978; Stuckey and Fay, 1981). Such integration increases the level of dependency of the Third World countries, the periphery, on the more developed capitalist countries, the core (Santos, 1970). World system theorists consider labor migration as a process in which rural manpower is incorporated into the capital production system. According to Abu- Lughod (1 983) the foundation of temporary international migration is based on using labor as a rented commodity. This in itself dehumanizes workers.

Rempel and Lobdell (1977) questioned the net value of benefits derived by labor exporting countries from the money remitted by their citizens who migrate abroad. The negative effects of receiving such remittances include an increase in consumerism in rural areas, a decrease in the production of food and export crops, and inflation.

-Conventional economic theorists view the international labor migration from poor to wealthy countries as a resource flow. Similar to trade, international labor migration yields benefits to the participating countries through numerous mechanisms that operate at both micro-, or individual, and macro-structural levels (Griffin, 1976). Other theorists have gone further by conceiving international labor migration as a process toward equilibrium in which capital flows from the rich and productive regions in exchange for surplus labor from poor regions. Movement of labor and remittances in opposite directions will lead to the development of rural periphery. Thus, a major body of literature is based on the flow of remittances (Birks and Sinclair, 1979; El-Saket, 1983; Russell, 1986; Keely, 1989; and Looney, 1989).

It was not until recently that some research went beyond simple quantification of the remittances and studied the social impact of labor migration (Helweg, 1983; and Appleyard, 1989). Hendrix (1982) believed that the family can be used as an explanatory variable for analyzing international migration. Hartman and Hartman ( 1986) studied 2,000 Jewish families in Israel and found that the native couples expressed much more conflict than immigrant couples. These researchers then concluded that immigration brings couples together as they face common difficulties.

Satid-El-Deen and Abd-El-Fadeil (1 983) found that international labor migration decreases non-migrant workers’ loyalty towards their jobs and countries because their dream is now to get a job abroad. Richmond (1988) dealt with a formal institutional exploitation and discrimination of the migrant workers and their family members in the new lands. Ismail (1989) argued that labor migration contributes to family instability

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for those families left behind. He believed that it was far better for both children and wives to accompany the migrants.

Few studies specifically recommended that governments should be aware of the importance of maintaining the family as a social unit (Pekin, 1989). Dumon (1989) pointed out a “need for global research on the relationship between family and migration in which the whole process of disorganization, reorganization, and dissolution is examined’ (p. 266). Perruchoud (1989) believed that international migration should be based on the humanitarian principle of family reunification.

The present paper attempts to study consequences of labor migration on families that accompanied the workers and those left behind. The main purpose is to study changes in family ties between the family members, extended family, and neighbors; and their concern about economic stability in Jordan, the host country, and the world market system. Thus, the strength of ties before and after migration is studied.

DATA AND METHODOLOGY

Data for this study were gathered from poor, middle class, and rich areas in Amman, the capital city of Jordan. The selection of the city of Amman was based on the fact that more than half of the population in Jordan lives in this city. As a vivid example of a primate city, the city of Amman also has been largely affected by out labor migration. The city has grown from a backwater area of the early 1900s to a city of white stone villas paid for by the expatriates’ remittances (Kifner and Miller, 1985). Compared with other labor sending countries, Jordanian migrant workers are the most likely to accompany their families (Keely and El-Saket, 1984). This shows another important aspect of family involvement in international migration in Jordan.

A total of 74 families were interviewed for this study. These families were divided into two groups, namely those who did not accompany (NAFS) and those who accompanied (AFS) the labor migrant. The same questions were posed to these two groups. The reason for this split in the sample was to find out how the present migration policies in the Arab oil-producing countries can influence labor migration among these two types of families.

Though it may appear small in size, the sample of 74 families used in the present study is the first and probably the only non-governmental source of information on recent labor migration in Jordan. In addition to being restricted to married couples with children, the sample also excluded workers who left Jordan before the 1960s. We attempt to keep the level of generalization at the family level. Similar studies conducted research on much smaller sample sizes. For example, Griffith (1985) took a sample of only 42 families.

In the presence of a third party, usually a woman or an elderly person, the wives of migrant workers were interviewed. This third party was required as a part of the traditional norms. Efforts to use a tape recorder failed because of the fear of many families that some of their responses might be used against them for tax purposes by the government. Each interview contained specific questions on variables related to family ties and their concern about economic stability in Jordan, the host country, and the world market.

Both groups of families were asked to describe the social consequences of labor migration in terms of the following issues:

Ties with the extended family members, Ties with neighbors, Ties within the family,

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Concern about the economic stability in Jordan, Concern about the economic stability in the host country, and Concern about the world market system.

We expected that the migration of the family head, with or without his family, would influence the ties between the migrant’s family and the extended family, as well as the local community and the home country. On the level of the migrant’s family itself, the migration of the family head would influence the intra-family relations and, hence, the family ties between the family members. On the level outside the family, labor migration may also create new forms of social relationships, where more concern would be directed to businesses and investments rather than family and community. In other words, individualism would replace the traditional family-community concern among these families.

It was expected that integrating the families of Jordanian migrant workers in the world market system would result in increasing concern among these families about the economic stability in the host country and in the world market, and decreasing traditional concern for their extended family, their community, and their own country, Jordan.

Essentially the study of these ties and concerns must show the strength of the associations and how they are changing because of labor migration. Furthermore, concern about the economic stability in itself is an indicator of ties of the families with their social organizations at different scales of analysis.

FINDINGS

Non-Accompanied Families Ties with extended family Changes in the impact of labor migration on non-accompanied families (NAFS) are shown in Table 1, page 57 1. At least 50% of the non-accompanied families reported no change in such ties as a result of the migration of the family head. On the other hand, only 19% of the NAFS believed that their ties with the extended family increased after the family head migrated abroad. Nearly 30% of the NAFS reported a decrease in their ties with the extended family. Thus, a total of about 70% reported an increase or no change. This finding suggests that in traditional societies such as Jordan’s, strong family ties may even increase due to the absence of the family head. Usually, an older male member of the extended family will become in charge of the external affairs of the migrant family. In many cases, such a role results in serious conflicts between the wife and the extended family members. This may be the reason why more than 30% of the NAFS reported a decrease in their ties with the members of their extended families.

Ties with neighbors The majority of the NAFS (52%) believed that their relationships with their neighbors stayed the same; only three families reported an increase, and 17 families or more than 40% reported less strong ties with their neighbors. This is surprising; it was expected that these families would mostly maintain stronger ties with their neighbors since they would be in more need of support and care as a result of the absence of the family head. In Jordan, tradition requires neighbors to have special care for other neighbors, espcially if such families have no male adult members. The above finding is an indication that the wives are less likely to establish new or stronger relationships with their neighbors in the absence of their husbands. The non-accompanied families that reported no change

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in their relationship with neighbors largely keep their ties with their old neighbors without establishing new ones.

Ties within the family For the NAFS, 38% reported lesser family unity after the migration of the family head. This was expected due to the separation of the father from his wife and children. The father’s absence results in severe inter-family problems, particularly for less educated wives who are more dependent on their husbands. Such severe problems may result in separation and in divorce. On the other hand, 19% of the NAFS reported stronger family unity. This may be due to low or no control of the husband and wise management of the educated wives. However, 43% of the NAFS reported no changes in the unity of their families. This was possible because mature cooperation between the family members existed before the departure of the family head. Generally speaking, wives with higher levels of education seemed to reduce the negative impact of labor migration on the families of migrant workers.

Intralfamily problems Eighteen families or 43% of the NAFS reported more family problems, especially between mothers and children rather than between husbands and wives. Most problems were related to the lack of children’s progress in school. In some cases, children dropped out of school at early ages. This result reflects the control that fathers exert and the important role that they play in family affairs. Yet, 9% of the families reported fewer problems. In addition, 48% of the families reported no change in their family problems.

Concern about economic stability in Jordan In regard to economic stability, 50% of the families in the sample reported more concern for the economic stability in Jordan. This was expected given that these families were living and investing in Jordan, their own home country. They kept track of the health of the national economy and the new directions of profitable investments. This does not explain why 9% of the families reported less concern about the economic stability in Jordan. It might be because these families invest little or nothing of the remittances they receive from their family heads working in Arab oil-producing nations.

Concern about economic stability in host countries The great majority of the NAFS or 72% reported an increasing concern abaut the economic stability of the Arab oil-producing countries. This is an expected finding. These families should be more concerned about the economic stability of the host country that their incomes come from. A small proportion of these families - only 2% - reported less concern, while 26% reported no change in their concern. These families probably are not aware of the importance of economic stability in the host countries.

Concern about economic stability in the world market Again, the majority of the NAFS, or 62%, reported an increasing concern about economic stability of the world market, particularly in terms of the value of the U.S. dollar. Migrant laborers are paid in American dollars; a drop in its value means a drop in the net income for them. In other words, migrant laborers’ income is integrated and tied into the world economic system. This could be the reason why none of the families reported less concern regarding stability of the world market and 38% cited no change in their attitudes - they were very concerned already. These families know that instability in the world economy and the value of the U.S. dollar means instability in their family income from abroad.

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Accompanied Families Ties with the extended family Data on changes in the impact of labor migration on the families that accompanied their head are given in Table 2, page 571. Of the accompanied families (AFS), 41% reported less ties with the extended family. This is a reasonable finding due to the physical separation of the families leading to less involvement with the members of the extended family. Accompanied families are more independent and less in need of support from the extended family. An increase in ties with the extended family members, reported by 31% of the families, can be attributed to less physical contact, thus creating fewer conflicts. Actually, some shared responsibilities or even obligations between the migrant family and their extended family toward remaining relatives or businesses in Jordan are positive factors for better relationships between the two sides. Only 28% of the AFS said their ties with their extended family members did not change.

Ties with neighbors Thirteen families or 40% of the AFC reported a decrease in their ties with their neighbors after they returned to Jordan. Again, this is expected because of physical separation between neighbors for many years. A similar proportion of the AFS, or 40%, reported no change in their relationships with their neighbors. They usually kept their relationships with old neighbors but hardly established any new ones after migration.

Ties within the family A large proportion or 56% of the AFS believed that migration caused stronger ties between their members. This suggests the important positive impact of the presence of the family head. Only 25% of the AFS reported lesser family ties after migration. In many cases, the wives were not able to adapt to the new physical and social conditions in the host country. This often became a major source of conflict, especially when the husband refused to return to Jordan with his family. In some cases, such conflicts caused divorce or separation between the migrant worker and his wife and children.

Intra-family problems Fourteen accompanied families, or 44%, reported no change in their family problems as a result of migration. The migration of the household head did not result in severe change in the family’s leadership or division of labor among family members because they accompanied the family head. This result reflects the negative impact of the separation of the family head from his family members. Unfortunately, present labor migration policies in the Arab oil-producing countries prohibit labor migrants from bringing their families. While only 6% of the AFS reported more family problems after migration, 50% believed that migration decreased their family problems. This suggests the existence of peace of mind if the labor migrant and his family members were together.

Concern about economic stability in Jordan Thirty-eight percent of the AFS reported more concern about the economic stability in Jordan. These families still have some kind of investment in Jordan. Besides the fact that the labor migrants must go back to their home countries when their work permits expire, they may not have been able to invest in the host country. Thus, they partially care about economic stability in Jordan. These families still have some responsibilities toward their close relatives who live in Jordan. Lack of such responsibilities may explain why 25% of the AFS showed less concern about the stability of the economic system in Jordan, while 37% showed no change.

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Concern about economic stability in the host country A large proportion of the AFS or 66% reported an increasing concern about the economic stability in the host countries. These families still live in the host countries and their future is highly tied to where the family heads are still working. Only 6% of the families reported less concern about the economic stability in the host countries. The rest of the families, 28%, reported no change. They know that the economic stability of the Arab oil-producing countries is an important basis for the economic stability in Jordan, where they have relatives and investments.

Concern about economic stability of the world market Again, a large proportion of the AFS, or 59% reported more concern in the stability of the world market and 3 1 % showed no change. These families realize the significance of the stability in the world market for Jordan and the host country. Lack of stability means interruption in the family income. A relatively small percentage (10%) reported lesser concern for the world market.

DISCUSSION

Although all families of migrant workers, NAFS and AFS, are affected by the migration of the household head, comparison between Tables 1 and 2 clearly indicates that the non- accompanied families are affected more by labor migration than are the accompanied families. In regard to family ties with the extended family members, labor migration reduces the traditional relationships. Ties with the extended family and neighbors are vital in the social organization of Jordan, where individuals are known through their larger extended families and tribes. Labor migration seems to weaken such social organization by weakening traditional family ties.

Labor migration seems to enlarge the intra-family problems among the NAFS and weaken the normal ties between man, wife, and children. This is a tragic consequence since these problems end up in separation, divorce, or children dropping out of school.

Severe family problems force many migrant workers to return to Jordan and sacrifice the golden chance of higher wages in the Arab oil-producing countries for the sake of keeping the family together. When the family was able to accompany the household head, family problems were reduced and the ties between the family members were enhanced. Children who accompanied their fathers had better school achievement.

Accompanied families were less concerned about the economic stability in Jordan than non-accompanied families. This could be the probable reason behind the Jordanian government’s sponsorship of annual labor migrant symposiums. However, many years of living abroad and geographic distance indeed lowered ties with the home country. A great proportion of both NAFS and AFS have an increasing concern about the economic stability in the host countries and the world market. This fact largely explains the present serious shortage in the foreign exchange reserves in Jordan which led to a sharp reduction in the value of the Jordanian currency and recent riots in the late 1980s and early 1990s.

CONCLUSION

The purpose of this paper was to study social consequences of labor migration on families in Jordan. The main goal was to study changes in family ties and concern about economic stability of the families that accompanied their head of family and those that did not.

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Labor migration has important consequences to the families of migrant workers in Jordan. Such consequences include a decrease in family ties and increased integration of these families in the world market system. The extent of these changes is based on whether or not the family is able to accompany the migrant worker. The main finding of this paper is that non-accompanied families suffer more as the result of labor migration than accompanied families.

Using independent data sets rather than governmental information, this paper’s findings can be extended to other sending countries such as Yemen, Egypt, Syria, and countries of South and Southeast Asia. Therefore, family unity should be asserted as an important “human right”guaranteed by all the involved nations. In the long run, this will bring more prosperity to millions of people who are affected by international labor migration.

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TABLE 1 IMPACT OF LABOR MIGRATION ON NON-ACCOMPANIED FAMILIES

No Change

No. Pct.

21 50

22 52

18 43

20 48

Variable

Ties with extended family members

Ties with neighbors

Ties within the family

Intra-family problems

Concern about economic stability in:

Jordan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Host countries . . . . . . . . . . . . World market. . . . . . . . . . . .

Decreased

No. Pct.

13 31

17 41

16 38

4 9

Increased

No. Pct.

17 41 11 26 16 38

8 19

3 7

8 19

18 43

21 50 30 72 26 62

4 9 1 2 0 0

No Change

No. Pct.

9 28

13 40

6 19

14 44

Decreased

No. Pct.

13 41

13 40

8 25

16 50

TABLE 2

IMPACT OF LABOR MIGRATION ON ACCOMPANIED FAMILIES

Variable

Ties with extended family members

Ties with neighbors

Ties within the family

Intra-family problems

Concern about economic stability in:

Jordan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Host countries . . . . . . . . . . . . World market. . . . . . . . . . .

Increased

No. Pct.

10 31

6 20

18 56

2 6

12 38 21 66 19 59

265 12 9

10 3 10 31 I

57 1

INFLUENCIA DE LOS VINCULOS FAMILIARES SOBRE LA ESTABILIDAD ECONOMICA

DE LAS FAMILIAS DE TRABAJADORES MIGRANTES EN JORDANIA

Jordania es un pais sumamente afectado por la migracidn laboral internacional. A mediados del decenio de 1980, m8s del40 por ciento de la fuerza de trabajo jordana se encontraba en el extranjero, principalmente en 10s paises Labes productores de petrdeo. Por otraparte, m8s del30 por ciento del ingreso nacional jordano proviene de las remesas financieras efectuadas por 10s trabajadores migrantes.

En el presente estudio se examinan primordialmente las transformaciones sobrevenidas en 10s vinculos familiares y su influencia en la estabilidad econdmica de 74 hogares de trabajadores migrantes en Jordania. Para estudiar 10s efectos de la migracidn laboral estas familias fueron divididas en dos grupos: acompaiiadas y no acompaiiadas. Se llegd a la conclusidn de que la migraci6n laboral internacional contribuye en tCrminos generales a la inestabilidad de las familias y que las familias no acompaiiadas padecen sus efectos en mayor grado que las acompaiiadas.

LES LIENS FAMILIAUX ET LES PREOCCUPATIONS DE STABILITE ECONOMIQUE

DES FAMILLES DE TRAVAILLEURS MIGRANTS EN JORDANIE

La Jordanie est I’un des pays qui ont CtC le plus affect& par la migration internationale de main-d’oeuvre. Au milieu des annCes les anntes 80, plus de 40% de la population active jordanienne travaillait i 1’ Ctranger, principalement dans des pays arabes producteurs de pCtrole. En outre, plus de 30% du revenu national de la Jordanie provenaient des transferts de fonds effectuCs par ces travailleurs migrants.

L’objectif principal de cet article est d’ttudier les modifications dans les relations familiales et les soucis de stabilitC Cconomique de 74 familles de travailleurs migrants en Jordanie. Pour Ctudier les conskquences de la migration de main-d’oeuvre, ces familles on CtC classCes en deux groupes: familles non accompagnkes (FNAS) et familles accompagndes (FAS). L’ttude a conch que la migration internationale de main-d’oeuvre contribue gCnCralement B 1’instabilitC familiale et que les FNAS sont plus affectkes que les FAS.

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