Back to Contents 9. Access to the labour market, means of basic subsistence 9.1. What does the law say with regards to stateless Palestinians seeking employment? E.g. Do they have the right to work on an equal basis with Lebanese citizens? Walaa Kayyal, a researcher living as a Palestinian in Lebanon whom Asylos interviewed for this report in October 2022 outlined the limits to Palestinians’ access to the labour market as follows: “Palestinians can work in the informal sector. So for example, I can open a bakery without telling the government so that I don’t pay taxes. They can work as painters, plumbers, butchers, they can work in a grocery store, they can work in a market. However, when they want to work in a formal sector, they should apply for a work permit. Usually it is the organisation you would like to work for which should apply for work permits. For example I work in an international NGO here which applies every year for a work permit for me. Some organisations say «We don’t apply for you. You should go to the Ministry of Labor and apply for it yourself.» Then you apply for a work permit and you pay for it. And even if the organisation applies on your behalf, they pay for you. It’s not for free, but you pay a negligible administrative fee.” (Source: Walaa Kayyal, interview record, 31 October 2022) A collective of NGOs working in Lebanon made a joint submission to the Human Rights Council Universal Periodic Review in 2020 in which they stated that: “The legal status given to the more than 479,000 Palestinian refugees, where they are still categorized and treated as foreigners rather than refugees, prevents them from obtaining a work permit, limiting them to jobs in the informal sector that are low-paid and do not offer any social protection.” (Source: Badil Resource Center: “Written statement* submitted by BADIL Resource Center for Palestinian Residency and Refugee Rights, a nongovernmental organization in special consultative status”, 23 May 2022, p. 2) A report of the Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights observed that Palestinian refugees in Lebanon are excluded from 39 syndicated professions, including law, medicine and engineering. “36. Palestinian refugees are excluded from practicing 39 syndicated professions, such as law, medicine and engineering, a difference of treatment that may be seen as prima facie discriminatory. The principle of national preference, coupled with a requirement for a work permit, makes it practically impossible for Palestinian refugees to obtain a decent formal job, confining them to low-paid, low-skilled work in the informal sector without labour or social protections. Even for the minority of Palestinian refugees employed in the formal sector, social protection is almost non-existent: although they are required to contribute 23.5 per cent of their salary to the National Social Security Fund, they do not receive any social security benefits except for end-of-service indemnity, which is only equivalent to approximately 8.5 per cent of their contribution. [...] (Source: OHCHR, “Visit to Lebanon – Report of the Special Rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights”, Olivier De Schutter, 11 April 2022, p.9) The same report noted that the legal statuses of Palestinian Refugees from Syria, and non-ID Palestinians in Lebanon are more precarious, and these groups face significant challenges in being able to secure any formal employment. 38. Over 28,000 Palestinian refugees from the Syrian Arab Republic and 3,000–5,000 “non-ID” Palestinians who arrived in Lebanon without identity documents after the 1960s, have a precarious legal status in Lebanon. Without legal status, non-ID Palestinians face restrictions on movement and difficulties in completing civil registration procedures and accessing public services, formal employment and the justice system. Palestinian refugees from the Syrian Arab Republic face similarly insurmountable obstacles, given the inconsistent application of policies and practices regarding the renewal of their residency status by the General Security Office. Owing to their irregular status and restrictions on formal employment, 92 per cent of Palestinian refugees from the Syrian Arab Republic rely 9. Access to labour market, means of basic subsistence 85