Labour unrest in Egypt continues

Workers sit in protest in front of the Shura Council.
 
Approximately 650 workers from the Arco Steel company in Sadat City, Monufiya, continued their strike for the eighth consecutive day to protest the alleged breach, by the company's managing director, of a contract signed in April, the Egyptian paper El-Masry el-Youm reports. The workers claim the contract stated their allowances would be raised. The workers are also protesting what they describe as arbitrary decisions to transfer certain workers and turn them from technical workers into phone operators.
The workers denied meeting with a delegation from the manpower ministry and said they will continue their strike until they meet with Minister of Trade and Industry Rachid Mohamed Rachid and Minister of Investment Mahmoud Mohie Eddin, until all their demands are satisfied. If those demands are not satisfied, they said, they would go on hunger strike.
Meanwhile, 20 workers form the United Sugar Company of Egypt continued their sit-in for the fourth day to protest what they describe as arbitrary dismissal from work.ِSome of the workers said the company had attempted to force them to submit their resignations. They said the management had already dismissed 24 workers, pushing them to file lawsuits in court against the company. They said they would not end their protest until they get their jobs back.
In Luxor, 56 owners of souvenir stores in western Luxor continued their sit-in for the second day, as well as a hunger strike at Qarna hospital, to protest a decision that increased their monthly rent from LE350 to LE385.
In Aswan, workers at the governorate's cleaning company went on strike, and 70 of the company's workers, technicians and drivers gathered in front of the city council to protest deductions from their salaries. Some of the workers assembled in front of the administrative prosecution office and refused to return to work.
In Daqahliya, workers and employees at Mansoura University Hospital suspended their strike yesterday after security forces put pressure on department heads to prevent workers and employees from participating in the strike, which began last Wednesday.