The Egyptian Federation of Trade Unions (EFTU) has decided to challenge a decision by the Egyptian National Council for Wages which has set the minimum wage in the private sector at LE400 a month.
Abdel Rahman Kheir, the representative of the EFTU at the council, said the government has made a decision which favors businessmen, neglecting the interests of workers.
Kheir added that the council’s decision violates article 23 of the constitution because it does not treat workers in the private and public sector equally. “The Council was wrong to make this decision and as representatives of the workers, we will not sit by and say nothing,” he added.
Meanwhile, Ahmed Mohamed Abdel Sadeq, advisor to the minister of economic development, said that the council is ready to listen to any complaints concerning the implementation of the minimum wage decision.
Ibrahim al-Azhari, secretary general for the EFTU, said he completely rejects the decision, adding that until the Supreme Administrative Court issued a ruling on the minimum wage, the National Council for Wages had not actually convened once since its inception.
Representatives of employers, for their part, said salary raises should be tied to productivity. Ahmed al-Wakil, head of the Federation of Egyptian Chambers of Commerce, said the council should have more looked more carefully at ways to improve employment practices and behavior, especially since current salaries in the private sector are already higher than the minimum wage it has set.
Translated from the Arabic Edition.
