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Jordan Conditions of Service
Because of their critical role in safeguarding the monarchy,
members of the armed forces have always enjoyed privileged status.
The few occasions of discord have almost invariably been caused by
dissatisfaction with the failure of pay increases to keep up with
inflation or the perception that rising living standards in the
private sector were outdistancing military compensation. With the
more heterogeneous ethnic composition of the armed forces rendering
traditional loyalty to the Hashimites less reliable, the king has
been personally concerned to ensure adequate, if not generous,
financial provision for service personnel. As a consequence,
maintaining income levels of existing personnel has remained a
priority even if this meant restrictions on the size of the armed
forces and a delay in improving the reserve system.
As of 1989, remuneration of the career military was extremely
modest by the standards of the United States armed forces. Pay
scales were low, although the total compensation and benefits for
an enlisted soldier were calculated to be worth three times the
basic wage. Conscript pay was far lower than that of career
personnel, amounting to only about JD20 (for value of the Jordanian
dinar--see Glossary)
per month--barely sufficient to cover personal
expenses. In addition to salary, military personnel were entitled
to family allowances and access to subsidized post exchanges. Full
medical services were provided to soldiers, their immediate family,
and their parents. Free transportation was available; the military
had its own fleet of buses to convey soldiers between their posts
and their home communities. Family housing normally was not
provided on post, but a system of thirty-year loans on generous
terms enabled many officers and NCOs to purchase or build their own
homes.
Most officers of the rank of major and above were provided with
automobiles for both official and private use, including free fuel
and maintenance. Successful completion of training and education
courses also resulted in a significant supplement to income. In the
case of a senior officer receiving a master's degree after
completion of the War College course, the increase could amount to
as much as 60 percent of base pay. The minimum period of
pensionable service was twenty years. Taking into account all forms
of compensation, it was estimated that military personnel enjoyed
a standard of living superior to that of civilian government
officials in equivalent positions.
Data as of December 1989
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