Back to Contents In a peer-reviewed article about Palestinians’ access to the labour market in Lebanon published in 2022, academics Samih Eloubeidi and Prof. Tina Kempin wrote: “Despite amendments to the Lebanese Labour Law and Social Security Law in 2010 waiving work permit fees for Palestinian refugees born in Lebanon, the 2016 unemployment rate stands at 23% and only 42% of Palestinian refugees are economically active. Women face higher poverty rates, higher unemployment rates, and only comprise 15% of the Palestinian workforce. Less than 3.3% of Palestinian refugee workers have an official employment contract that allows them to seek a work permit, highlighting that many are unable to access occupations that are open to them. Recent new employment restrictions have affected Palestinian businesses and increased insecurity. The situation is especially dire for young people, which constitute the majority of Palestinian refugees in Lebanon. Youth unemployment and lack of school attendance are one of the biggest issues that face young Palestinians in Lebanon, especially affecting females. Twenty-six per cent of young women cite household work and 15% cite family reasons for their lack of employment or educational activity while only 7% cite being restricted from obtaining work. For economically inactive men, the reasons are more varied; 11% cited illness, 12% cited ‘other reasons’, 6% cited they were preparing to start a new job, and 6% cited family reasons. Even if Palestinian refugees find work, they are often discriminated against, are exposed to unfair and unsafe work conditions, and are usually paid less than their Lebanese counterparts working the same job. The average monthly income of Palestinian workers is $356, below Lebanon’s official minimum wage of $447, which most Lebanese workers earn. Further, while the average is $356, half of the employed Palestinian refugee population earns less than $330 a month, placing them even further below the minimum wage. Because of the difficult work situation, many Palestinians have given up finding employment, citing long working hours, low pay, poor working conditions, and educational mismatch. Many refugees continue to be dependent on the United Nations Reliefs and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), established in 1949 to provide relief resulting from the 1948 Arab-Israeli conflict, for basic support. The UNRWA provides primary, secondary, and vocational education, health care, social services, infrastructure improvement, and emergency response.” (Source: Samih Eloubeidi & Tina Kempin Reuter/ The International Journal of Human Rights, “Restricting access to employment as a human rights violation: a case study of Palestinian refugees in Lebanon”, 11 April 2022, pp. 3-4) Based on a qualitative survey of 15 men between 24 and 75 years old living in the Bourj el-Baraneh Camp on the outskirts of Beirut conducted by researchers Samih Eloubeidi & Prof. Tina Kemplin Reuter in 2021, the latter reported that: “[...]Overall, the occupations that Palestinian refugees in Lebanon carry out on average are not enough to support them and their families or to enable the younger generation access to education and a better future. Employment restrictions in combination with the stateless status and camp confinement of Palestinians have therefore farreaching and grave consequences, affecting not only the current situation, but perpetuating a cycle of poverty, dependency on outside aid, and limiting the ability for progression and advancement. […] Perceptions of restricted access to employment on emotional and mental well-being [....] The doctor, for example, responded with ‘agree’.46 When asked about his choice in the interview, he based his response on the fact that he does not have access to resources, knowledge, or practices that he would have if he were allowed to practice and develop his skills outside the camp. He noted, with exasperation: ‘I cannot become better than what I am. I am a cardiologist by training, but I haven’t done an EKG in a very long time’, highlighting the restrictions he faces in his occupation.” (Source: Samih Eloubeidi & Tina Kempin Reuter/ The International Journal of Human Rights, “Restricting access to employment as a human rights violation: a case study of Palestinian refugees in Lebanon, Perceptions of restricted access to employment on integration”, 11 April 2022, pp. 8-9) 46 The doctor was answering question 1: I feel oppressed working this job. Restricting access to employment as a human rights violation: a case study of Palestinian refugees in Lebanon, Samih Eloubeidi & Tina Kempin Reuter. 11 April 2022, p.9 9. Access to labour market, means of basic subsistence 97