Aleppo – Muhammad al-Ali
A large percentage of public sector employees in Aleppo are facing uncertainty regarding their job future since the fall of the regime and the takeover of the caretaker government, led by Mohammed al-Bashir.
Despite reassurances from officials of the caretaker government about keeping employees generally in their positions, especially in civil service institutions, many employees of these institutions found themselves at home, and their fate of returning to work in their institutions remains suspended, awaiting a decision from the new government.
Moaz (38 years old) stated that he has been working in the Military Housing Establishment in Aleppo since 2017 under annual contracts that are almost automatically renewed, as it was sufficient for him to sign the contract at the beginning of each year.
He added that the institution’s employees did not receive their salaries for last October due to the dismissal of the branch manager, Ahmad Tawila, from his position and the vacancy of the position as “the disbursing officer” in the institution.
While employees were waiting for their salaries for November as well, which were supposed to be disbursed between December 5 and 10 as usual, the regime fell, and the situation changed completely.
Despite their initial concern about their job future, the employees of the institution felt optimistic about the possibility of improving their living conditions with the start of a new era that would grant them their rights, especially since their salaries do not exceed 400,000 Syrian pounds (about 26 US dollars) at maximum.
Uncertain fate
Salaries did not arrive, and the institution’s work stopped completely, according to Moaz, who mentioned that one of the officials of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) initially met with the employees but referred the matter to a higher official to decide their fate due to their large number, promising them a meeting later to inform them of the decision, but this did not happen due to the concerned officials traveling to Damascus.
Moaz explained to Enab Baladi that he is a father of two children under five years old, and his wife is a housewife, and he has no other income apart from his government salary, noting that his attempts to find another job have failed despite knocking on all available doors, and his fate is currently suspended, especially with the year nearing its end, which threatens to prevent the renewal of his contract with the institution.
The young man, who held his job with a high school diploma (baccalaureate), noted that the Military Housing Establishment, despite being affiliated with the Ministry of Defense, is filled with civilian employees, who were never military personnel, as it specializes in construction projects like residential area rehabilitation and road construction. While the caretaker government still lacks a Minister of Defense, their fate remains mysterious.
No return dates
Ghassan (34), an electronic engineer at the radio center in Aleppo since graduating from university, also found himself out of a job after work at the center was suspended following the regime’s fall on December 8.
Ghassan said that all they were informed of was that work at the center is suspended during this phase, without specifying a date for their return to their job positions, pointing out that he does not accurately know if he will return to his job or not, while he currently relies on his work with the Syrian Red Crescent to secure living expenses for his family.
In contrast, it was noticeable that the government of al-Bashir rushed to resume school and university operations since taking office, and salaries for teachers for November were disbursed, but it did not apply the same approach to other sectors, as many public institutions remain in a state of anticipation regarding their fate and the future of their employees.
The commander of the Military Operations Administration, Ahmad al-Sharaa (Abu Mohammad al-Jolani), talked about a plan to raise salaries by 400%, and the Minister of Health in the caretaker government, Maher al-Sharaa, confirmed that there is a plan to increase the salaries of workers in the health sector by 400% starting this month or the next.
In al-Bashir’s first statement after taking over as head of the caretaker government, he said that the General Command entrusted him with managing the Syrian government’s affairs during a transitional period until March 2025, aiming to handle files and government institutions and ensure the return of their employees and activate their roles to provide services to citizens.