Ahmed al-Hussein, 40, started working as a taxi driver to make ends meet after the salary he had been receiving from the Real Estate Interests Directorate in Raqqa governorate was suspended. The payments stopped after the Autonomous Administration took control of civilian institutions in the province.
Al-Hussein said he had been working at the directorate since 2018, after the Islamic State group was driven out of Raqqa following a battle led by the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), backed by the international coalition. He added that he remains formally in his post to this day.
He said he and 10 other employees at the Real Estate Interests Directorate who had worked under the Autonomous Administration remained at work, but without receiving salaries. He added that the suspension of salaries for the past three months has increased their economic burden.
Syrian army forces entered Raqqa governorate in northeastern Syria on January 18, following a full withdrawal by the SDF toward al-Hasakah governorate and the city of Ain al-Arab/Kobani.
On January 31, teachers in Raqqa staged a protest demanding that they be formally retained in their jobs.
The teachers who took part in the protest, which began at Clock Roundabout in central Raqqa and then moved to the governorate building in the southern part of the city to meet officials, expressed concern about being excluded from the education sector after the recent changes in the city.
Employees in Raqqa are demanding formal recognition and job security after the Syrian government regained control of the city on January 19. Since then, official institutions have reopened and sub-directorates have been reconnected to central ministries in Damascus, raising broad questions about the fate of staff who worked for years under exceptional circumstances.
Salaries halted for three months
Former employees of the Autonomous Administration interviewed by Enab Baladi expressed concern over the suspension of their salaries for the past three months, with no official decisions issued regarding them by the general directorates or ministries to which they belong.
Al-Hussein called for an official decision by the General Directorate of Real Estate Interests to clarify their future. He also urged authorities to adopt an approach similar to that of the Health Ministry, which announced the integration of former Autonomous Administration employees with government staff. He said no decision has been issued in their case so far.
“Until we contact you”
Khalaf al-Barakat, a collection worker at the Water Directorate in Raqqa governorate, said no decision had been issued concerning their status as former employees of the Autonomous Administration and that they had stopped working at the request of the Water Directorate in the province.
He explained that a number of his colleagues who had worked in the workshops and operations department were hired, but no decision was issued regarding collection workers and administrative staff. Instead, they were told, “Stay in your homes until we contact you.”
Al-Barakat said he and his colleagues submitted several official letters to the Water Directorate in the governorate, but received no response.
He added that a group of employees also went to the governorate building, but found no one there to meet them.
Al-Barakat described the exclusion of former Autonomous Administration employees as “unfair.” He said they are “simple employees with no connection to any political or military matter, they are only looking for a livelihood.” He described his own situation, and that of thousands of employees whose salaries have been suspended, as dire amid the rising cost of living in the area.
Challenges to integration
Speaking to Enab Baladi about the mechanism for integrating former Autonomous Administration employees into state institutions, Murhaf al-Hussein, director of the Media Directorate in Raqqa governorate, said around 2,750 employees had been integrated into state institutions. They had previously worked in institutions run by the SDF and were distributed across about 18 government directorates and institutions.
He added that the largest share of the integration process was concentrated in the Raqqa City Council, the Water Resources Directorate, and the General Electricity Company.
As for the challenges, al-Hussein said the obstacles to integration are administrative, legal, and financial. He added that the relevant authorities are working to address them gradually to ensure institutional stability.
The director of the Media Directorate said the government’s approach is clear in supporting and accelerating the integration process, while giving all employees coming from the previous institutions a full opportunity to integrate into the state structure, with no reservations about the matter
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