4 Hunger Striking Workers Forced to Resign, Call off Strike

Four hunger striking workers who had been sacked from the Indorama Shebin Textile Co. called off their week-long strike on Sunday, September 6th. Weeks earlier, the company's administration had sacked six workers, including the four who eventually went on hunger strike: Mohamed El Aasar, Abdel Aziz Behkatro, Ayman El Seesi, and Samir El Qazazz.

Five of the six sacked workers were forced into accepting dictated pension plans, while the remaining worker, Samir El Qazazz, has refused to do so.

Bekhatro said "we ended our strike on Sunday when a delegation from the (Ministry of) Manpower told us to accept the pensions that the company's administration was offering us - or nothing at all. This pension or severance pay, whatever you want to call it, is totally inadequate. But what could I do? I had to pay an overdue bank loan worth LE 20,000 or else I would end up in prison."

Bekhatro had been employed at the Shebin El Kom Textile Company for 24 years; he was forced to accept a lump-sum pension of only LE 29,000 (around $US 3,600.) His fellow sacked workers were given even less.



Shame on the Ministry of Manpower & shame on the Administration of the Indorama Co.
JC

***

فض الإضراب - E-Socialists

LA TIMES - EGYPT: Textile workers go on hunger strike