Tag: ss

Resources on Egypt’s State Security Police

Cement workers stage sit-in south of Cairo

Posted on By 3arabawy

More than 500 workers at el-Qawmiya Cement Company in Helwan staged a sit-in Sunday morning, in front of the office building of the CEO Nabil el-Gabri, demanding their full annual bonuses.

The workers were entitled to a total profit share of LE30 millions (roughly 10% of the LE306 million profits made by the company the previous year). In addition to the cash sums, part of this money should be allocated to the housing and social services. The management only paid LE13 millions, triggering industrial action from the workers today. The Factory Union Committee apparently lobbied for only another LE7 millions, which was refused by the workers, who demanded the full remaining LE13 millions.

The director of the Helwan State Security Bureau Officer Ashraf Shura showed up at the factory in person, and negotiated with the workers. The sit-in was disbanded around 5pm, after Shura promised the workers their demands will be met. The workers also chanted against their Factory Union Committee officials, calling for their impeachment.

[Above: An undated photo of the director of Helwan’s State Security bureau Officer Ashraf Shura, seen above in brown plainclothes. He was involved in torturing labor writer Mostafa Bassiouny, by beatings and electric shocks in 1999. Photo courtesy of Egyptian blogger Ahmad Abdel Fattah.]

Public transportation strike ends

Posted on By 3arabawy

Public Transportation Authorities workers suspended their strike in Cairo today after a compromise agreement was reached with the government.

State Security agents, accompanied by an Assistant to the Interior Minister, met with the strikers in Nasr City Stations (Fateh and Nasr), at 4am today to tell them that the government agreed to raise their percentage of ticket sales from 2.5% to 6% (the workers were initially demanding 10%). This means out of each LE1 bus ticket, the workers (including drivers, ticket collectors and maintenance workers) will receive 6 Piasters. The security officials also told the workers that the government has decided to allocate LE13 millions in the new July budget to implement all the rest of the strikers’ demands.

The workers accepted the compromise, and public buses started moving again in Nasr City around 5:30am.

Two hours later, the drivers and workers in Cairo’s other stations (Sawwah, Amiriya and Gesr el-Suez) went on strike demanding the same gains their Nasr City brethren had received. The strike lasted till 10:30am, and was only suspended after security officials assured the workers that the agreement applies to them too.

And in Ramses Underground Metro Station, around 30 cashiers and supervisors staged a sit-in today, demanding:
1-Increasing their bonuses, and basing the increase on the job ranking, not the “mood” of the management, as the workers put it.
2-Receiving allowances for working on weekends (Fridays and Saturdays), similar to what state employees in other industries get.
3-Receiving hazards allowances, since the cashiers deal daily with millions of dirty banknotes they receive from the citizens.
4-Receiving a percentage of the ticket sales.
5-Receiving part of the income generated by the advertisements put up in undgerground metro stations. (Apparently this used to be the case, but the government stopped this practice.)

Some of the photos I took of the sit-in could be found in this Flickr set.

Metro Cashiers' Protest

And here’s a short video clip:

I left the Ramses Station around 1pm, and the negotiations were still going on. I’ll try to update the posting later with more details.