Egypt’s Mahalla workers suspended their strike

Mahalla factory strikers

The protesting workers of Egyptian Mahalla Misr Spinning and Weaving Company decided to suspend their strike after their representatives met with Mohamed Morsy’s advisor on Sunday.

The meeting between the workers and ministers of industry and business to discuss the workers’ demands was promised to be scheduled after the holy month Ramadan. The company’s administration issued a statement on Sunday agreeing to the number of strikers’ demands, such as increasing in profit sharing, increasing of the fixed salaries, and also some health reform procedures at the company’s hospital.

o after meeting with Morsy’s legal adviser and his promise to organize the meeting between the workers and government representatives, the decision was taken to suspend the strikes and sit-in till the end of Ramadan (18 August 2012), according to Kamal Fayoumi, the representative of labor union in Mahalla. The decision whether to continue or to stop the protests will be taken after the results of promised meeting.

Workers of the state owned Mahalla Misr Spinning and Weaving Company, one of the biggest Egypt’s textile manufacturers, were protesting during more than a week. The company’s 24,000 employees were demanding the removal of the company’s CEO, the increasing of the profit shares and salaries, the fixed minimum wage not less than 1,500 L.E. and protection and formalizing of the workers’ rights as well. After yesterday’s thugs attack on the protesters one person left dead and four injured. Mahalla labor strike is not the only one in the country, as Egypt is witnessing the wave of labor strikes now.