Category: Photos

I traveled with some friends to the Nile Delta town of Talkha today to visit the Mansoura-España Garments Company workers, who are facing a new onslaught from the management, which not only betrayed the agreement brokered last year, but also sacked on Sunday trade unionist Mohsen el-Sha’er for “speaking to the media” about the work hardships.

Initially we were denied access to the factory by the security, acting at the behest of the management, who went ahead and locked up the workers inside to prevent them from coming out to meet us. Few minutes to 2pm, the workers stormed their way out using another exit [located at the company warehouses], and brought us inside the factory.

There’s bitterness among virtually all the workers, who feel they’ve been let down by everyone: The management, Labor Ministry and the state-backed General Federation of Trade Unions.

From a 1,200-strong labor force in 2006 and a monthly production exports of at least 6,000 pieces of garments to clients around the world, including the US, the number of workers went down in 2007 to 287 workers, and now it’s 250 only. The dwindling numbers are a result of sackings or resignations over the dismal work conditions. The management also does not bring them any more production orders, with the aim of liquidating the business.

The average basic monthly salary of the workers ranges between LE150 to 200 [USD28 to 37]. And they were neither paid their Social Bonuses nor May Day grants from 1999 to 2006.

The workers were only paid these grants and bonuses for the year 2007, when the management and the govt were terrified by their factory occupation last year.

I’ll write more later, but for now you can check out more background info about the factory in this dossier and Flickr set.