This report is issue no. 58 of LCHR’s Economic & Social Rights series entitled “Protesting Workers Can Make Change”. The report monitors workers’ protests during the second half of 2007 against the governmental policies that have led to the deterioration of their livelihood conditions and the increase of unemployment. The report also tries to present the international and local dimensions that have led to these protests. It will also show the size and causes of these protests.
The first section of the report presents international events and conflicts that have led to changing international relationships. These conflicts have led to increasing hunger worldwide, as more than 900 million people suffer from hunger worldwide. These conflicts have also threatened the stability, security and development in many countries.
The second section of the report shows a reading on the conditions of human rights in Egypt. As dozens of civilians were put in military courts, many chief editors of independent newspapers were imprisoned, some human rights organizations were closed down and some political parties were not granted declaration. The report also shows the absence of the role of the Egyptian parliament in issuing legislations that protect the rights of the producers and monitor the performance of the government that is full of corruption and injustice. This section also shows the deterioration of people’s economic and social conditions related to healthcare, education, housing, social security, food, pension and the low salaries, while at the same time there is a rapid increase in the prices of basic services, food and medicine that many people can’t afford.
The third section of the report shows the size and conditions of Egyptian workers, as the free market policies have led to decreasing the number of workers in the general business sector from 1.5 million workers to less than 900 thousand workers because of selling the companies and factories that they work in. it also shows that about 6 million people working in the governmental sector suffer from low salaries that sometimes reach 40 Pounds per month, which is not enough to buy one kilogram of meat. The report also shows workers’ problems in the private sector, as there are more than 10 million workers in this sector in both the organized and unorganized sectors and many of them face violations to their salaries, holidays and working hours. They also don’t have syndicates to defend their rights. Most of these people work in the 6th of October, the 10th of Ramadan, Borg El Arab, Helwan, Shobra El Kheima and El Mahalla El Kobra areas. The report also shows workers’ problems related to their right to organization especially after the last workers’ union elections for the round of 2006-2011 that were not impartial and there were much administrative interference that violated workers’ rights to nomination, voting, counting and announcing results. It also shows the nonexistence of independent unions for workers, as there are 20 million workers in Egypt and only 4 million of them are in the general workers’ union.
The fourth, fifth and sixth sections of the report show the size of workers’ protests in the second half of 2007 that have reached 331 protests in the governmental, private and public business sectors. It shows that there were 43 Strikes, 115 Sit-ins, 27 Demonstrations and 146 Gatherings. The governmental sector has witnessed 133 protests (17 Strikes, 47 Sit-ins, 10 Demonstrations and 59 Gatherings), the private sector has witnessed 118 protests (17 Strikes, 40 Sit-ins, 15 Demonstrations and 46 Gatherings) and the public business sector has witnessed 80 protests (9 Strikes, 28 Sit-ins, 2 Demonstrations and 41 Gatherings). All of these protests have varied for various reasons, like not paying workers their financial dues, arbitrary firing, the non-fixation of employment, ill-treatment by the administration, arbitrary transferal, low salaries, inequality in salaries, canceling contracts and the nonexistence of healthcare.
The seventh section of the report presents some remarks on all the events related to workers that have happened in Egypt during the second half of 2007 concerning workers’ protests, the role of the general union, syndicate committees, political forces, the government and factory owners in supporting and helping these workers. That also includes the conditions of workingwomen in both the official unofficial sectors.
Then the report presents some recommendations, like stopping the selling of companies, banks and lands until a national committee is formed to monitor the selling process and gear this money towards national projects to reform the general structure of services especially in the fields of potable water, sewage systems, transportation, housing, healthcare and education.
The LCHR asks all the officials to grant worker’s demands by paying their financial dues, fixing temporary employment, providing equality between workers, increasing the minimum limit of salaries to 1000 Pounds per month, provide them with a periodical subsidy or bonus that is no less than 15%, stop the privatization of healthcare, amend the syndicate law to allow the establishment of independent syndicates without any interference from the government.
At the end, the LCHR asks all civil society organizations to unite in solidarity with workers’ demands to guarantee their rights to decent work, fair fees, organization, protesting and participation, in order to insure social peace, security, equality and freedom for all citizens in Egypt.
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