The Tadamon Coalition announced on Sunday its intention to escalate against the decision by parliament to reject any discussion of the coalition’s self-drafted civil service law by planning a press conference and protest in front Doctors Syndicate on Wednesday.
Two trials were made last week by MPs and the parliamentary authority to submit the workers union’s draft law, but the Labour Force Committee completely rejected this draft being discussed alongside the two draft laws by the government, media coordinator for Tadamon Coalition Wael Tawfik told Daily News Egypt.
The coordinator explained that workers are not granted their financial rights, which include an annual increase in salary amid inflation of prices. The government law suggests a fixed increase, but workers suggest an annual increase in salaries equivalent to the inflation of prices, in accordance to the Central Bank of Egypt’s (CBE) estimation.
Due to low salaries, some workers will tend more towards obtaining extra income illegally to improve their financial conditions.
Directors of companies employing those bound by the law can submit a report to the State Supreme Council against workers without the presence of any supervisor to attest to its accuracy, therefore, bias in these reports is expected. In such a case, workers are not allowed to legally oppose this themselves, but rather their company administration does so.
MP Haitham Al-Hariri criticised the government law in a televised interview saying that it is ”unfair and unjust” as people cannot afford to live under such a law. The general secretary of the Doctors Syndicate Mona Mina said last Thursday that approximately 1,000 doctors would be affected by the government’s law.
Last week, the workers union of the General Petroleum Authority organised two rallies calling on the state to consider their draft law.
The civil service law was initially rejected in February for a number of reasons and due to its unconstitutionality. Its first article states exceptions for certain governmental authorities from implementing the law. It was resubmitted to parliament later in February, following the harsh amendments by the ministries of finance and planning to prohibit financial bonuses.
The government’s draft law, which overhauls the system of salaries, bonuses and promotions across state institutions and authorities, was the only one out of more than 300 laws to be rejected by parliament in February.
The rejection of the law prompted immediate criticism from President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi as the government strongly advocated for the law as an integral part of the government’s reformation plan.
